After Death
by Tozi
Summary: She had been given Rukia to raise, wether it was living or dying, abandoning her would not even cross her mind. Tiny AU.


Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach. Really. I do not. I do, however, own Ishiguro Komesuke, but then, she's not much anyway. So there.

Author note : this is where I make amends for my dreadful penmanship and explain myself on my probable mistakes in either grammar, spelling, conjugation. I am french. Truly, completely french, which means I'm the only one in my whole building speaking any semblance of english, and I do not have the leisure of practicing this language actively everyday. It also means that my vocabulary is not as flowing and accurate than that of a native speaker. Feel free to forgive me for my mistakes; if you don't, I'd be grateful if you could point them out to me to avoid repeat should I ever write another story in english.

This story was first written in french, and then translated in english. I really, really hope you'll like it!!! ^^

Enjoy!!

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Sagikara Hisana was the eldest daughter of a shogun of Yeso. She had two older brothers who had given her two nieces and a nephew. She also had a younger brother of thirteen, already married to a woman older than him, and two younger sisters, one of whom died at the age of three when Hisana herself was five, the second sister was barely a week old and was named Rukia. Sagikara Hisana had been married at the age of ten to a wealthy samurai in the service of the emperor's intendant, but had yet to take up residence under the roof of her husband and consummate the marriage to change her name to his. It was anticipated that this would take place just after her fifteenth birthday.

Her mother having died when giving birth to Rukia, it was also decided she'd take her little sister to bring up because she was her closest female blood relative. One winter morning, just after they had finished the reserves inventory, her father had her brought to him and solemnly entrusted the care of her sister and that of her family's honor to her. Then she was tucked up in a small square palanquin, comfortably padded, at the head of the convoy of baggage that would follow them to their new home. She looked away from her childhood home nestled in the snow, never to see it again. Then she saw no more than the walls hung with red of the palanquin and heard no more than the deep breathing of Rukia and the crunching of footsteps in the snow. She was the samurai's first wife. Somehow, it comforted her, because she would not have to worry about other women. Her mother was the second wife of his father - there were four in all - and this competition was often described as an assembly of harpies, ready to tear each other to get a favor. Sagikara Inoue had not been outdone in shenanigans herself, and at night, exhausted, weary, she would lay in bed with her daughter to tell her how melancholic the day had made her.

She knew exactly what being married meant. It was destined to happen. Since birth, she had been taught as in the women's house, the inhabitants were too experienced and too tough beneath their silk attire to withold any kind of information from their only girl offspring. She had learned to be a woman whose husband could not overlook. In both public and private duties, her mother and the other wives - who gathered around the only girl for many years like so many hens around a single chick - had not hidden anything.

Hisana remained awake for long nights, terrified of what life had in store for her. Finally she was married. There were relief and fear to be felt at the same time. Relief, because being married was better than not being married, terror, because a man still seemed to be a woman's worst enemy. She studied her father. She had slipped out of her mother's room sometimes to watch. She wanted to see what she could admire in a man, what she could respect, what she would need to know. If it became necessary, she confided in her mother Inoue, thinking she would be protected forever. Women who were successful were the rich widows who remarried without letting their husbands put their noses in their affairs. They were women who could be independent. Women who let men believe they could not live without them and would carefully secure all their assets to avoid losing what they could win on the side.

She had carefully recorded all the knowledge in her diary until a day when, at thirteen, she realized the enormity of the task he would have to bear if she did not want be a mere plaything in the hands of her husband. Inoue had laughed when Hisana had confessed her fears. A cruel laugh, cold and desperate, because a mother, no matter how bitter, always wants to cry when she realizes that her daughter knows too much to be considered a child. "Would it not be easier if I knew whom I have married? Maybe we could become friends ... enjoy each other's company...? "Inoue had stopped laughing and her eyes had become vacant. Hisana had suddenly had the impression that her mother looked far away, far beyond the thick dark shades of reeds, over mountains and seas for something lost. Then Inoue had examined her daughter and had taken her roughly by the shoulders. The tired face of her mother approached her own and clearly articulated. "Love, Hisana is good for those who have nothing else. We can not really love, if whom we love profits from that love. There remains a stain, a doubt, a marr. "

Sagikara Inoue was a worn woman. It was no surprise when she died giving birth to her second daughter.

The trip to Usukeshi lasted a week. The last morning, the maids who traveled with her dressed her carefully in her ceremonial kimono - nine layers of painted silk weighing a total of 40 kilos - and gave her the broad white cap of brides. Then they left her with her escort as she was not allowed to bring with her the servants who had seen her grow. She would engage another house of domestics when settled with her new husband. Rukia was also richly dressed and wrapped in a painted haori that Hisana had worn when she had been the same age.

The tragedy occurred at midday when the sun was at its highest in the sky and the snow sparkled with a thousand frozen lights. The quiet winterland resonated suddenly with clamors and the escort around the convoy moved. It happened fast, so fast Hisana was not sure what was happening until too late. The robber's cart crashed headlong into the palanquin, their heavy draft horse shattering the fragile bamboo structure. Soon, nothing else remained of Hisana and Rukia but richly dressed corpses lying in the snow. Hisana, haggard, lost, watched as looters decimated her escort, and as several men threw their weapons, abandoning their posts without any remorse. A broken chain hanged from her chest, as well as that of Rukia, whom she was still clutching in her arms and had not even awakened.

She did not realize immediately what was happening and she looked on absently as she was undressed by the outlaws. The sight of their chapped hands, dirtied, vulgar, made bile gather in her throat, and she turned away. She walked a bit, without feeling cold or tired, slightly oddly with all her clothes, but she did not sink in the heavy snow.

She slowly digested what had happened. Dying was not what she expected. Actually, she had never expected to die. She had not considered this possibility. She sank into the snow, which rebounded as a cushion. Rukia wriggled for a moment, before finding a comfortable position. Hisana watched the little face half hidden in the clothes, the tuft of jet-black hair, the closed eyes and skin as pale as hers. Rukia would be the very portrait of their mother, as Hisana was. If the dead would grow up, of course.

The shinigami found them a few hours later, in the same place. He barely took time to explain what was happening and was content to bury them quickly with a few words muttered by way of prayer. "Soul Society is not a bad place."

**

Obviously, thought Hisana laying eyes for the first time on Rukongai 59, the shinigami and I do not have the same value scale reguarding quality.

In fact, her first vision of it was that of a large gray tent camp, disgusting and disparate, which hovered between foggy light and nauseous mud. Between the tents, haggard, dirty, wandered some sickly men and women. Hisana observed. She always wore her beautiful ceremony kimono, cut out in fine silk and embroidered with pearls. Her long obi flared in wide majestic folds shining with pearls and precious silks. She turned and walked toward the nearby forest. If someone saw her, her life would be forfeit in the world of the dead.

She fed Rukia a few nuts, black berries and water she collected in leaves, chewed and poured in her mouth. Her mother had taught her how dew was thought to strengthen and calm pregnant women, and how to gather it. She felt the hunger, but no weakness yet. Never having wanted for anything, she wondered if her body could function by receiving less for a time. Rukia was hungry and it was vital that she feed to keep her from crying loudly to indicate her discomforts.

She must find a way to a place more suitable to live in Soul Society – was that what the black clothed being had called this place ? – And hide her precious clothes away. She should find a way ... a way for what?

For the first time in her life - the irony that this happened after her death did not go unnoticed - Hisana was completely free to do whatever she wanted. Well, not really, because she discovered new obligations every day. Stay clean, find food, drink and shelter and how not to be too cold at night, all that were challenges that she had never had to worry about before. But there was no set way to follow anymore. No more samurai to marry, no more wedding night to fear, nor future second wives, or childbirth ... Hisana was only a woman and she discovered that the title was far more rewarding than being a Sagikara. She decided at this point in her thinking to abandon that name and never try to recontact her ancestors. For what little they might have rebuilt as a fortune in this world, she would find herself again attached to a wirlwind of events which would take her over. Never again.

The answer to her interrogations found her by chance, and more suddenly than she thought it would. It came as a man dressed in a kimono and wearing a dark green haori. The whole effect was modest but infinitely superior to anything she had encountered in the area. He was also very clean, very neat compared to the local population and walking lazily along the path, hitting pebbles with a rather crooked stick. He had on his head a conical hat, shorter than those she'd seen in use on earth.

When he saw her, he stopped and observed her, just as she was doing. She did not take offense, the circumstances were such that she could afford a small breach of propriety – the one that said that a woman should under no circumstances be alone with a man.

However, the man was still watching and Hisana was beginning to feel a little uncomfortable. She had never been stared at for so long. Even the governess sent by her husband's family to examine her had not remained silent and staring for so long.

" Soul Society really messes up things, eh? "

She did not initially realize that he had spoken, or what he had said. Then, she quickly caught the thread of his thoughts. "Oh. What do you mean?

- You have landed in the wrong district. It is very clear. Nobody wears this kind of clothing in the area." She wanted to compliment his powers of observation. Then she thought it would be inappropriate. She bowed deeply. "As you can see, my sister and myself find ourselves in a rather uncomfortable situation. Would you be so kind to give me a direction where I might find help?

- Help ?" A broad smile appeared on his face. "But any help is expensive in this world. What can you offer me?" His broad smile seemed to indicate that she should catch on his thoughts but she could not take the hint. Then the eyes of the stranger fell on Rukia. Instinctively, Hisana closed her arms around her more tightly.

"This ... is your sister, I suppose?

- Yes. Her name is Rukia. I'm Hisana. And yourself, Mister? "The man took off his hat and Hisana's eyes widened at the sight of his short blond hair. He laughed with a fake embarrassment.

"Me? Oh, uh ... For now, Hisana-chan, you can call me Urahara. And I have a proposition for you. "

Hisana was used to bargains. She had been trained to manage a large property. Haggling was essential to the proper administration of significant assets. She felt reassured with the apparition of a familiar notion in those foreign lands, she listened. The man continued. "I have a precious object I want to hide. I have the means to hide it in a soul. I ask that you give me the right to hide this object in your sister's soul in return for which I will give you a favor. "

It was by far the most bizarre request Hisana had ever had to consider. But on the other side - she was dead.

Now, hide something in Rukia's soul. This seemed particularly crooked. And she was hesitating. This should be Rukia's choice, not hers. She watched a little more the stranger. Urahara, he said he was called. His somewhat slumped posture at the shoulders showed no particularly high extraction, a young gentleman perhaps, a little lazy and little concerned with everyday worries. His broad smile, too, was suspicious, so she relied on what she knew of men in the living world. She saw his evil eyes in the hat's shadow. And the cane, the cane ... it was carelessly whirling between his fingers and was strangely disturbing, but she did not know why. She looked down at Rukia and her small sleeping face against the silk of her radiant haori. She shook her head.

"No. I'm sorry Urahara-san, I can not accept this term of your contract." The man did not lose his smile, merely shrugged. "Bah. Too bad. Good luck!" And he went on his way.

Hisana took the decision to follow the road he had come from. It looked pretty decent and if she was going in that direction, she was likely to arrive where Urahara normally resided, in an area probably more hospitable than this ... this refugee camp.

She walked a long time. From morning till night, and again from morning to evening. In the middle of the third morning, she noticed a shabby little hut through the trees.

**

The weather was pleasant for an early spring. Although temperature was not a source of great anxiety for him, Byakuya was happy to get the little breeze that caressed his face as he ran between the branches. The pale green light of the passing day filtered through young leaves, and it was late enough for the birds to have stopped singing. Unlike his taisho, he hated bird songs. They were often a complex combination of shrill, brief and repetitive squeals, which quickly ran upon his nerves. Thus, the silence of the forest on the end of days was comforting, because there were many birds in the vicinity of his taisho's offices, and therefore his own.

He allowed himself a smirk. It was probably the most justified promotion in Seireitei. To be promoted Lieutenant right after passing the examinations, and to be already on his way for the Bankai. He snorted, amused at the thought of his grandfather. He was previously convinced that Byakuya was an average shinigami. It could not be further from the truth. Byakuya knew the name of his zanpakuto since early childhood. He conversed with her for even longer and they were fully coordinated. And what a zanpakuto she was!

Senbonzakura was the person Byakuya loved most in the world. Sweet, beautiful and discreet, like a flower falling from a tree.

She was also demanding. He was far from having the physical strength and mental discipline to master her most powerful aspects. He could not advance further with his Shikai if he made no major advances in shunpô for example.

Hence the training and the late race in the forest. Running on higher grounds in a field as uncertain as were tree branches would certainly help. And perhaps then... He could finally give this cursed Shihouin Yoruichi a lesson in humility. He chuckled inwardly in advance.

"Do not go near the water, you'll burn yourself."

It was not said loudly, but it came from just below him, and he was taken aback. Unsettled enough to miss the next branch, he fell down the tree in the bushes below. Initially too surprised Byakuya remained motionless on the ground, face to the sky. How did it happen?

"Anyone there? Is everything all right?" Steps were heard, and as they came toward him, he straightened up. In a flash he was standing, blade drawn and raised under the pointed nose of a pale young girl with black hair. She squinted at the blade, frozen in place. He realized his mistake and put it away promptly. The girl bowed asking again. "Is everything all right, shinigami-sama? What happened?" Byakuya watched the girl. She was quite short as she only came a little above his shoulder, but not too short. Her skin was pale and contrasting strongly with long shiny black hair. Her eyes were a forget-me-not blue, dark and deep, very broad. He replied without thinking - as too often for his liking. "I ran, I thought I heard something and I was perturbed. I fell." He ended by showing the broken twigs on which he had tried to catch himself. She looked at the branches, doubtful, while he molested himself mentally. What kind of answer was that, frankly? It would make her take him for a beginner! Bad first impression for a first day as a Lieutenant.

But when the girl spoke, carefully avoiding his gaze, there was not an ounce of suspicion - even antagonism - as it often was when a resident of Rukongai spoke to a shinigami.

"In this case, shinigami-sama, I must offer you some tea.

- Tea?" Why would this girl make tea in the forest? What was she doing in the forest, in the first place?

"Yes, shinigami-sama. My sister and I were brewing a pot of tea before setting up camp for the night." Ah. That explained it. Vagrants.

In retrospect, Byakuya knew very well when he faltered. It was exactly when he took the time to respond properly to the girl instead of leaving immediately. Yet this was no time for reflection, and it seemed only natural to reply: "Alright. Tea. " Like an idiot, Byakuya added mentally after analyzing its behavior.

The girl with black hair - it reminded him a little of Captain Unohana - led him to the small clearing he had been headed to while running.

The new grass was just beginning to show between the dead strands of the previous year and a stream flowed at the clearing's far end between large gray and mossy rocks. There was a small fire, with a very battered kettle hanging on the end of a branch. There was a small bundle placed on a roll of fabric, he supposed to be the luggage of two sisters, although this appeared to be very little for two traveling girls. At the same time, he was comparing with other girls he had met, and two wandering Rukongai peasants were doomed not to have the same wardrobe as a young noble. He doubted Shihouin Yoruichi would take a lot of baggage when she was travelling away, but Byakuya was sometimes found questionning the fact that she was indeed a woman, so she remained an exception.

He instinctively sought the sister with his eyes. Since she had warned that there were two people, he set immediately to locate the two protagonists. The first girl was at 1.96 meters on the right just in front of him and the second ... The second had become invisible. He felt a distinct presence far more powerful than the first, from the region of the bundle, but nobody to link it to. There was good potential for shinigami, Byakuya thought absently while the first girl approached the baggage. She lifted the bundle, and said quietly to what was crouched behind. "You can come out, there is no more danger now."

And the first girl pulled out a third package and swung it on her hip comfortably before approaching the bundle closer to the fire, while motioning to Byakuya to take place somewhere around the fire where he would be nice and warm.

After years and years of good manners thousand times repeated during the tea ceremony, he felt a little odd in seiza near the small fire on slightly moist moss, with the battered kettle swinging on its branch. Then he noticed that the third package the girl had brought back was a baby.

Or rather a young child, a very young child who watched with huge dark blue eyes beneath a nest of black hair. Frail arms and legs stuck out of patched clothes, its skin was pale and dusty like the older girl's, but the look the child bestowed on him had an incredible vivacity.

The girl had opened the first bundle and was extracting two wooden cups. She made sure that they were clean before filling one to the brim, and handed it to Byakuya. "Shinigami-sama." She said to get his attention. He took the cup, and said. "Kuchiki. Byukuya Kuchiki." She seemed surprised that he introduced himself, and suspended her gesture before pouring the tea into the second cup. "I am Hisana, and this is my sister, Rukia." The child only sat, blinking at him, and Hisana poured some tea in the second cup. Byakuya was surprised. Few people ignored who he was. And if they did not know the name of Byakuya, that of Kuchiki was enough to make them crawl lower than dirt. This girl seemed to ignore completely who were the Kuchiki. She was looking now after her sister, presenting the cup to the lips of the child, who took large gulps of the streaming concoction. And finally, despite his being proud of his lineage, he was not enough disturbed by the lack of propriety to refuse the hot drink.

It was pleasant to drink tea in this spring green glade and the gold of late afternoon, with only the crackling sound of fire and the concentrated breathing of the little girl drinking tea.

The tea itself was good. It had not the refined and heady aroma of tea which he was accustomed to, but rather a bitter taste. It was strong enough that even if the draft was boiling, it seemed refreshing ; especially after two hours of exercises and the day he had spent within the 13th division filled with birds in mood for singing.

Having finished drinking, he observed a moment the wooden goblet. It was a rough thing, fairly coarse, thick edged to prevent it from cracking, and polished more with extensive use than with the careful craft of an artisan. They had a slightly bumpy feel which followed the wood grain . Now that it was empty, he noticed that the cup itself exhaled a portion of the tea's smell, mixed with the earthy and wet scent of boiled wood. His old nurse would have fainted with horror upon learning that not only had he been offered such a cup, but in addition, he actually drank from it. His grandfather came to his mind and he barely restrained a laugh.

"Kuchiki sama?" The girl looked at him curiously, but not as much as her little sister, who for a quarter of an hour, had looked as though he had appeared out of thin air ; or as if he had sprouted a second head, or said something very rude, or made a very silly face, or ...

"Do you know if there are laws regarding the settling of souls in the fields of Rukongai?

- No. Everyone is free to settle where he wants, as long as it is not on private property.

- Oh. And .. this forest, does it belong to someone?

- No. The last fields of the 35th District are further east, and those of the 38 th are several miles north.

- Oh, thank you. "She gave a relieved smile, then turned to her little sister, who was still unblinkingly staring at Byakuya." Does it please you to stay a bit here Rukia? You like the forest, right? "

Slowly and without leaving Byakuya's eyes, the little girl nodded. Hisana realized the insistence of Rukia in her eyes and turned to Byakuya with an apologetic face. "Excuse her, Kuchiki-sama, she is very curious with new people, especially with the Shinigami. She does not mean any harm." Byakuya felt like answering he rather worried that it was unhealthy for a child not to blink for ten minutes in a row, but was content to bat the subject away with a very elegant sweep of the hand.

Well, well, thought Byakuya. That makes up for the peasantly answers of earlier.

He returned the cup to the girl who placed it beside the first and stood up. He did not linger. The look of this skinny little girl was really too weird and he was afraid of not being able to keep from staring openly at Hisana for very long. He greeted them with a brief nod and within a heartbeat he was gone.

**

When the birds remained quiet, it was great to work in the lieutenant's office of the 13th Division. Especially now that Byakuya had demolished the whimsical furniture which his predecessor had packed the room with. It was a well sized room, with shallow piedes of furniture on two walls to store paperwork. The floor was a dark honey color and was so well polished and well adjusted he sometimes doubted whether it was really wood. Large panels on the gallery opened on a lush garden with willows, flowerbeds, ponds and fountains. If it were not for the many birds, Byakuya would have felt very happy and very comfortable. Fortunately at home, gardeners would not let anything settle other than the rare nightingale or the occasionnal dove.

Captain Ukitake was a man worthy of respect, from whom Byakuya was sure he could learn a lot. Kuchiki Ginrei, Byakuya's grandfather, had said that if there was a man who could teach him how to get rid of his bold temper, it was the polite and measured Ukitake Juushiro. All the more reasons, therefore, to sign with both hands when he had received a proposal to work as his subordinate. Indeed, in all occasions he saw his captain before - even those particularly annoying when Byakuya had all the trouble in the world not to fall asleep - Ukitake remained master of himself, alert and interested. How exactly he did it, Byakuya had no idea, but with such a model, Byakuya had every intention of becoming a little more like he was expected to be. As Kuchiki Ginrei in fact, who had copied his conduct on that of his own father, who himself had learned of his father and .... By extension, Byakuya would become the copy of the first Kuchiki to walk in the Soul Society, and it suited him perfectly.

"Only, you have something unique, Byakuya-kun."

Senbonzakura. Of course she was unique. Not just because nobody, not even members of one same family, did not share the same zanpakuto, but also because it was Senbonzakura. Sweet, beautiful and quiet, but extremely powerful. Sometimes, when Byakuya was thorough in his training, he touched the most powerful techniques she had revealed, and he felt it. This monstrous power, pure, sharp and flowing, stagnant behind the lock Senbonzakura set on his soul.

She had warned him. To go too fast, too far, would lead to his downfall. Byakuya was patient. What he did, he wanted to do well. He trained, strenghthening his body and spririt, he meditated and waited to see the body of a young teenager morph into that of an accomplished man. According to the healer of his family, he should still grow a bit to reach adult size.

However, whenever Byakuya mentioned his grandfather in one of their conversations, Senbonzakura darkened with contained fury. He was under no illusions, his zanpakuto did not like his grandfather.

'I do not like him. And you too, do you? " Byakuya did not answer this question. It was hard to decide what love felt like. Especially where his grandfather was concerned. But well...

His work hours for the moment were quiet. He was mainly to coach new hired shinigamis - some were older and more impressively built than him - and paperwork.

Even if he liked the action and to feel his body working harmoniously to its limits was a feeling that Byakuya appreciated very much, he loved the paperwork.

He loved to read. Anything, really. Since little, he had devoured the library of his house. He did not know where this pleasure came from. Perhaps it was because he had a very good grammar, spelling and conjugation, which made him notice all the faults in what he read. It amused him very much, especially when he recognized the origin of the document as Yamamoto-soutaisho, or Chamber 46, or the Court of Pure Souls. That such a paragon of nobility and science make spelling mistakes was very entertaining, and sometimes he could not refrain from returning the document with the required signature, and the errors highlighted.

Senbonzakura would cry with laughter when he did so.

The early days of association Ukitake-Kuchiki went very well. Byakuya had great freedom in his organization, which allowed him to come early in the morning to gather the mail of the day before, leaving the evenings free for the training outdoors. He made progress in Shunpô, though he always had a kind of deadlock.

He continued to go running in the forest, each time by a different path. He had no further trouble to distinguish this precise distances and reliefs, but the speed remained a problem.

During a heavy summer evening - large black clouds lay ahead in the West and the Seireitei would probably spend the night under the rain, he remembered the two girls he had met in the spring. They had looked like willing to settle into the clearing where they had mounted the camp and he wondered some time if their projects had been completed.

It was strange, he thought, that when imagining the girls he had known before - except a few Shinigamis who seemed as ferocious as wolves - fending for themselves in a forest with a baby he wanted to scream with laughter, but when he thought of this skinny girl and her little sister he would think they would have no problems. Perhaps it was because they were not as young as they seemed.

Still, that evening, before leaving the barracks of the division 13, he passed through the kitchen and took with him a box of cookies that were kept for the many occasions the Captain had to have tea with a visitor. The boxes took up a whole closet, and Byakuya knew that, despite frequent visits, Ukitake was the one who ate most of them. This man seemed a bottomless pit when it came to food.

Finding the clearing went without difficulties. He just needed to head toward the promising energy emanating from the small girl and it was done. Obviously, they had remained where he had met them. He took time to observe how they had settled, and he and Senbonzakura in a corner of his mind let out a low and surprised whistle. Admittedly, this had been a few months now that they were there - five to be exact - but the work they had gotten done was impressive. They had built a cabin. Rudimentary, of course - the walls were made with tent canvas - but the roof was thatched with plaited straw showing a certain amount of expertise, even if Byakuya was far from being an authority on the subject. They had arranged a little creek downstream in the clearing - a sort of shallow holding tank - and seeing a few clothes drying, he supposed it was used for washing.

And most importantly, there was a vegetable garden. It was small but surprisingly well stocked. They had had to start it immediately to have the time to plant in early spring. He descended from his tree and walked towards the hut. There were no doors, as there was nothing to steal, just two heaps of very dry herbs they had to use as beds. The place was deserted.

Feeling a bit silly standing in the middle of the forest with a box of biscuits, he wondered what was best. Everything was going well for them, obviously, then what should he do? Go away without leaving the slightest hint that he had ever come? Just leave the cake box? Wait for their return?

"Look, Onee-chan! It's the shinigami from last time!" Too late. Senbonzakura gently mocked him in his head, and he missed what Hisana said to her sister on politeness. With a deep breath, he turned toward them.

They were dressed in rags the same as last time - used to nobles with closets able to stretch beyond the boundaries of imagination, he was surprised for a split second – but they seemed more fit. They were less dusty, their cheeks had a little color.

Now he saw them, their names came back into his memory. Hisana and Rukia. Hisana was carrying a bag - the pouch he had observed the last time - filled with things gathered in the forest - large green tufts were sticking out. She also has two metal objects at her belt. One wide and flat, and one longer at the end with a beveled edge. Rukia ran to his side, her arms full of dried ferns.

Coming to him, Hisana offered him a lovely smile and bowed to him very politely. He answered with a simple tilt of his head, hiding well that his digestive system was melting into a nice and warm creamy mush.

"Kuchiki-sama, it's very nice of you to come visit us, it's an honor to welcome you.

- Why are you here? "

Rukia's small and pointed face popped out from the back of the Hisana's worn kimono. The latter gave her a pat on the head. "Rukia, she murmured. Be polite, please!

- Why are you here, Kuchiki-sama? "Rukia replied obligingly. Hisana sighed and pushed Rukia to the cabin. "Very well, go lay the ferns down now." And she went. Byakuya tried to remember at what age a baby would learn to walk as it seemed unbelievable that something so small held itself so well on two legs.

He turned his attention to Hisana, and noticed that she seemed to expect something. He suddenly remembered that he had not opened his mouth since they had arrived.

"I came to see whether your installation went well." Hisana had a grateful smile, and she said. "Thank you, Kuchiki-sama, we are well settled. Would you like some tea?

- I brought this." And, with a clumsiness he would curse for several days, he handed her the box of cakes. She looked at the box, then to Byakuya's face he miraculously managed to keep impassive, then her smile shone like a sunbeam. Byakuya, although it took a moment to admit, was dazzled. "Thank you, Kuchiki-sama! It's so nice of you! " She took the box and ran toward the cabin." Rukiaa! Rukia! Look what Kuchiki-sama brought! "

The little girl came out of the hut, and what followed was one of the most striking episodes in Byakuya's life - and marked the beginning of a strong bond between him and Rukia. The child quickly noticed the red box in the hands of her older sister who crouched at her side so she could see it better. Rukia looked with great curiosity. The color, especially, seemed to surprise her. The color red, she seemed to think, was previously reserved for flowers and she was curious to know how it could be reproduced. Hisana laughed lightly and said that once the cabin was finished, she would show her how and what the color red was made with. "But, she continued, "what is important is what is inside.

- Oh?" Rukia looked up innocently like any surprised child who does not really understand how one could be enthusiastic about something. Hisana took on a sly and erudite look and said emphatically. "These are cakes.

- Cakes?" As if Rukia, in addition to having never seen a red cake box, had never even heard the word. Hisana continued." Yes, or cookies, biscuits, if you prefer. They are to be eaten and are very good.

- Are these cakes, cookies or what?

- Cookies are a kind of cake. And there are several kinds of cookies, just like there are several kinds of biscuits.

- Oh? What is it done with?

- Flour, eggs, but especially sugar.

- Sugar?

- It tastes a little bit like honey, except that it looks like very very very small white grains." This seemed to disturb Rukia. "Honey into tiny white grains?

- Like the sand.

- Like the sand? And you _eat it?" _In everything she had asked previously, that was what seemed to surprise her most. Hisana answered triumphantly. "Yes. Do you want to try?"

Rukia nodded. Hisana opened the box, and Rukia plunged nearly her entire head inside. "It smells good.

- Yes it does. Take one, and put it in your mouth. Chew well just like with red bean paste." Rukia complied and her face assumed an air of serious concentration quite misplaced on such a young face, especially when compared with the carefree and delighted grin Ukitake wore when engulfing boxes one after the other. Rukia chewed, chewed, chewed and chewed again, several long seconds, and Byakuya thought he had never seen anyone keep a biscuit - presumably reduced to a liquid state - that long in the mouth. Finally she swallowed and opened her eyes. She was fixed on her sister, then descended slowly to the full box of cakes. Always with that incredibly alive and aware look, she turned her gaze to Byakuya, and gave him the most blinding smile he had ever seen and would ever see.

She ran down the gentle slope and threw herself against his knees, pressing them with full force, shouting: "Thank you!" Then she relaxed - he was grateful, because he was about to lose his balance - and ran in circles around him still screaming, interspersing her thanks with squeals of joy. She stopped again in front of him, and threw back her head to look into his eyes, always with her beatific smile. "Cookies are great!" Then she turned to her sister, still crouching near the entrance of the hut and seized the black shinigami hakama. "Come!" Onee-chan will make the best tea for the biscuits! " Coached by her joyous energy, Byakuya followed, feeling stupid.

**

He did not know whether to be proud to have made them so happy or ashamed to see them so poor that without him they would probably never have eaten anything resembling a biscuit.

It was not the flour that was difficult to obtain, it was the white and refined sugar. There were pastries with honey, sticky and heavy, but small biscuits with crispy crumbs that would melt in your mouth could not be found beyond Rukongai 20. If you had any luck.

He felt Senbonzakura wake in his head and smile. 'If you want to bring them things to please them the next time you'll have to choose things that you use every day without noticing.' She was right, as always.

Wait a minute.

Since when had he planned to return?

**

The cookie episode profoundly impressed Byakuya. Previously, poverty in Rukongai was a known fact, but he had to be confronted to it in person by means of a little girl who did not even know what cake meant. Only his deep sense of self prevented him from launching a humanitarian campaign without end. Rukia was very cute, but many people - Shinigami - from the Rukongai showed themselves to be without scruples, without honor, pride or intelligence. Helping young girls in need, Byakuya knew he could do, but fools?

He pondered the delicate question of merit with Senbonzakura. Were there people more deserving than others? How to know? Senbonzakura spoke in riddles, and he could not decipher anything at all. What should he do? He, the heir to the Kuchiki family, should he make a move for Rukongai? Decades of strict upbringing rebelled. What? He had already far exceeded the limits by talking with two girls, one an adult and unmarried, not to mention the fact that he drank tea with them. If his grandfather learned of this he was good for an arranged marriage within the week.

After three days of hesitation, he resolved to ask a question to his Captain. After all, he was there for that. But just one, to hide what was really happening. Ukitake's office was two doors down the hallway so the master - and thereby the lieutenant – might have a little intimacy if they ever had a visitor or meeting.

Byakuya knocked on the door and entered when given permission. He went to give his captain the morning's reports and knelt in front of him. The captain noticed the attitude of his second being somewhat unusual as he became suddenly deadly serious. "Ukitake-Taisho, I have a question for which I would like an impartial opinion." Ukitake smiled. Byakuya was really a bit pompous for someone his age. "I'll do my best."

"Should one help anyone that one can help?" This was a very strange question for a Kuchiki. Ukitake made a mental note never to mention it to Ginrei, who asked him about his grandson every time they met. The man had almost no concept of privacy regarding his descendant.

"Of course Byakuya-kun." Ukitake's face hardened a little. "But be careful, because you can not really help those who do not help themselves."

At that moment, the good Samaritan career that Byakuya could devote himself to took a sudden and brutal end.

He wondered for a very long time what he would bring to them on his next visit. Other cookies? But he was certain they had rationed them and they would still have it half full. He discussed the subject at length with Sebonzakura and decided to make a list of what was not easily found in the Rukongai. Strangely, the first thing he thought of was soap. Not that they were particularly dirty. It's just the first thing he thought that was not found in nature. He was afraid of insulting them, so he put off the soap for later.

Cloth.

Thick material to make blankets and beds. Feeling cold, even when they could not die bcause of it, was unpleasant. Or fine fabric for clothing. They were girls. What would girls use every day without thinking about it? Soap - no - a brush, or at least a comb. A mirror. Senbonzakura applauded. He would take them solid, practical, simple. Small in size, perhaps. Where to find it? All his expenses were monitored closely by his grandfather. How would he explain the purchase of two combs and a mirror when he had them in quantity?

In a flash of genius, he thought of the attic. Nobody never went there and it was used to store things his family would not use anymore. Including the old war campaign stuff of his deceased father. There should be an old military kit ... If he added one of his own combs, they would have everything they needed.

Byakuya was now in possession of a strong toilet bag of black cloth from which he carefully tore the Kuchiki crest off, with two wooden combs, scissors, brush, tweezers and a few hair strings. Wanting to customize a little his gift, he took his knife and carved in the comb's wood one"Rukia" and another "Hisana".

**

The gift greatly pleased them, especially Hisana. She gladly showed the mirror to Rukia, who discovered with surprise an image of herself clear and accurate. She asked Byakuya everything he knew about the manufacture of mirrors and he found it quite difficult to answer completely. She seemed convinced that magic was involved somewhere. Then, the inscriptions on the combs intrigued her. She leaned over and asked her sister. "What does that mean onee-chan?" Hisana showed her the comb and pointed her finger at one of the ideograms. "Try to find by yourself, Rukia. These are words I've already shown you. "Rukia frowned and leaned forward with implementation.

"Ki ... so ... Kishon? What's this?

- Look better.

- Hi ... Hisana! It's your name, Onee chan! "Rukia beamed. Hisana took the second comb and showed her. "And on this one?" Rukia watched the comb for a few seconds before saying, delighted. "Rukia! It says Rukia! "Hisana gave her her comb. "Yes, that's it. We have each our own.

- Oh?

- It is your comb, and that's mine. It's a gift just for you and a gift just for me. "

They gripped both their comb carefully and Byakuya again felt proud and embarrassed to be the source of so much joy with a gift so modest. Rukia rushed upon him to thank him and Hisana disappeared inside. She came out after a few seconds with a small brown package. She handed him with a smile saying. "It's wild tea, it is very strong. You can use the leaves several times in small quantity." She continued. "It gives me pleasure to give you something back, you are very generous, Kuchiki-sama."

For the moment, Byakuya felt very silly. He took the tea with gratitude and carefully put it away in one of his sleeves. "Thanks." It was difficult to obtain this kind of thing in the Seireitei.

« You are welcome whenever you want to have tea with us. "Again, her smile made him melt and he was surprised to acquiesce. Rukia squealed with pleasure and pulled him to the fire at the entrance.

**

The tea they offered him was very strong. He had drunk it for the first time in the afternoon and not only was the taste very bitter, but he stayed awake all night. He had the opportunity to discuss with his zanpakuto, but since then he used it only a pinch at a time and drank it only on early mornings in the office, while sitting down for work.

For the 13th division, the night shift was reduced. It was only formed of twelve Shinigamis who spent the night there to ring up an alert in case of emergency. The team changed every week. It was thanks to this team that Byakuya was known to be a very early riser. He came every day several hours before the reports were due and for what? Paperwork. A chore no Shinigami would accept to do with good will and even less on an early morning. After six months, what had been taken for an excess of zeal from a newly appointed officer had become a habit and Ukitake had questions. He himself, when his cough prevented him from sleeping peacefully, preferred to go to the office early, but for the young lieutenant in full health this was no normal behavior. It was not right for a young person to be such a workaholic.

One morning - still at night, really - where he arrived after a troubled sleep, he saw a light in his young assistant's office and decided to pierce the secret of the young man's vitality.

He knocked and entered without taking the trouble of waiting for an answer.

The young man was kneeling at his desk, studying a bundle of papers which had to be the boring and extensive report on the progress of division two. He had beside him a tea pot with two cups, one of which was full of dark liquid with a very strong smell. "Ukitake-Taisho? What's going on?" There was a hint of surprise in his tone, as the first interview of the day he had with his captain usually took place around noon. Ukitake sighed and sat down in front of his Lieutenant.

"Byakuya, I want to talk to your schedule.

- My schedule?" As if his timetable were normal.

- Are you sure you organize your work time well enough? You're here incredibly early and I do not want you to kill yourself over work. I am very pleased with everything you do," he said suddenly as he saw the young man frown. "But you're not obligated to work so much ... There are a lot of problems not worth so much effort, or that you could ignore completely.

- It does not bother me. I am familiar with everything with what they asked me to do at home. You have no idea how better it is here than in our breakfast room when the meal is served." The response was so out of character he took it for truth. He dropped the subject and pointed to the teapot.

"What is that ?

- Tea. "Alright. Stupid question, stupid answer. Byakuya felt that something was missing end he stretched his hand over the desk and suggested: "Would you like some?" Ukitake accepted with a smile weakened by the bags under his eyes and took the steaming cup carefully. He blew and took a sip. The taste surprised him. It left his mouth free of the stench of blood he had been coughing up all night and his lungs seemed to dilate when he inspired the purified steam. "Wild tea. Where did you get that?

- It's a gift, Ukitake-Taisho. "Byakuya said plunging back into his report.

**

"Byakuya Nii-sama!" He woke up suddenly when something fell on his stomach, momentarily cutting off his breathing. "Byakuya Nii-sama!" He rubbed his eyes and sat down, Rukia sliding down his torso onto his thighs. "What, Rukia?" He was exhausted from his last mission he had been leading near the Rukongai 40. He had had very little sleep for a week. He met the girl's gaze, Rukia seemed to expect something. He always felt like he was staring at an owl in these moments.

"You're a shinigami, eh?" Now that was a surprising question. For the three years he had known them, they had never asked about the Seireitei, the Shinigamis or his family. They had probably discovered that his name was famous, feared and respected, but they had never discussed the subject. Like his rank or his motives for coming to see them. It was nice in the end, compared to his family's universe where everyone on the estate was often busy reconstructing his schedule minute by minute. "Yes. I am a shinigami." And not just any shinigami had he wanted to add but he doubted it would have any significance for her. She gave a big smile and said. "When I grow up, I'll be a shinigami, like you!" He estimated her energy before responding. If she had no chance, it would be no good to keep her illusions bright. But she had this intense radiation which suggested good potential.

His eternal serious look plastered on his face, he said flatly. "Well, you can try. You must work hard. "With a determined look, she nodded her head several times with an almost comical seriousness. Then she looked around and said. "Do you know when Onee-chan will be back?

- No. How long has she been gone?" He was disappointed not to see Hisana when he arrived but she was usually out for long hours in the forest to gather herbs and roots to prepare meals.

"Ten days." Byakuya thought he had misheard. He stared at the girl. "Ten days?

-Mmh, yes. She went to the 19th Rukongai to sell the remedies she made. She does it every year when we're not traveling. "

The 19th Rukongai? Byakuya made a quick calculation. Hisana walked quickly but she was was probably carrying a heavy burden ... Four days of travel at least. "I do not know when she will return. You know how long it takes her to sell everything?

- Three days.

"Then she should return soon." It meant that Rukia had been alone in the forest ten days, to anyone's mercy, anything, anytime. "You're not afraid to be alone like that?

"A little. But onee-chan has to do that. She makes a few very good medicine and she makes a lot of money like that. With what we still have from last year, perhaps she will have enough to buy new clothes. "She pointed to her patched yukata.

Byakuya comtemplated staying with her for the night but suddenly remembered the two reports he had yet to write for the next day and dropped the idea. He would call on them again tomorrow to ensure their well being. Returning to reality, he saw Rukia staring at him as usual. With a lightninglike movement, he began to tickle her. She burst out into a cascade of shrill laughter and squirmed like a worm to escape the iron grip of the shinigami, without success.

Yes, it was very nice to have met Hisana and Rukia.

**

The sun was still high in the sky when he returned the next day. Hisana must have arrived late the day before because she was near the laundry wringing water out of clothes. Obviously, she had been able to buy new ones as she wore a much better kimono than what he was accustomed to, even if it was second or third hand. Not seing Rukia anywhere, he supposed she had gone to play somewhere and he approached the young woman.

He had discovered a year after the start of their friendship, that Hisana was older than he thought. He took care to make noise with his feet to not take her by surprise because the last time it happened she had ended down in the stream, a rather embarrassing situation. She turned and smiled. "Hello Byakuya-sama. How are you?

- Well. I heard that you have made a trip?

- Yes, I have done well this year. In addition to clothes, I managed to buy some tools. It is time that we get some furniture, don't you think? "Byakuya said nothing. He agreed with her and he knew she knew he did. So why bother to respond?

He narrowly avoided Rukia who as usual, rushed over to embrace him - a habit he did not know how she could have come to develop because he had not encouraged it in any way. He watched as she strutted in her new kimono. Then Hisana came closer and she asked her, her hands behind her back.

"Say, Onee-chan ... I saw a robin's nest with eggs in it.

- Ah? That's good. You never touched it I hope.

- No, no, I didn't. But it means that spring has begun." She let her sentence suspended, as if to let her audience finish it. Hisana seemed to guess what it was about, because she left her spot to sit on her heels and watch her sister. Rukia squeaked.

"Is it still a long time 'till my birthday?

- Yes, almost two months.

- Oh!" The girl seemed genuinely sorry. Hisana smiled. "Come on Rukia. Two months is not so long a time." As usual, Rukia's bad mood did not last, and she turned to Byakuya asking with a dazzling smile.

"Say, Byakuya nii-sama when is your birthday?" Byakuya, even if he knew how it was when he was asked questions like that answered without thinking. Honestly. "The day after tomorrow." It seemed to fill Rukia with happiness. "Oh, it's true?" How old will you be?

-Two-hundred and one years.

-Wow, you're old! "It was something he had never been told before. It was something that had probably never been said to any Kuchiki. He thought for a moment of his grandfather's face if anyone had one day dared to say "Wow, you're old!" To his face and felt his stomach turn with contained laughter. "Is it important? Birthdays, I mean." Hisana and Rukia looked at him as if he had said something enormously stupid. Then, Rukia began. "But Byakuya nii-sama, birthdays are important!

- It is true! It's the celebration of birth, life ... The opportunity to spend quality time with people you love, to show others that they are appreciated ...

- Ah." That would explain it, somehow ... The people with whom he spent his birthday - his family - were rarely good company. Seeing that the subject did not trigger any enthusiasm, Rukia grabbed his hakama - one day she would pull too hard and Byakuya would die of shame - and pulled him toward the forest. "Come, let's fetch strawberry seeds to eat after the soup, they are ripe enough now!"

Two days later, after leaving the barracks of Division 13, Byakuya took the usual path to return home. Bypassing the first courtyard, he saw several elegant carriages that had brought the first guests of the evening and if the odor rising from the kitchen were to be believed, the meal was also well under way. He crossed the archway which led to the apartments of the blood family, and passed his grandfather in the first hall.

"The celebrations begin at seven and a half, Byakuya. Do not be late.

- No grandfather. "

Byakuya's room was spacious, with high ceilings and large windows. When the weather was fine, he could open an entire wall on the outside, overlooking a well maintained flower garden. A cherry tree - the oldest of all the Seireitei - gave shade to a clear small pond in which turned some large kois and to small well trimmed bushes and shrubs. Byakuya was the only one to have access to this garden permanently.

In several large chests, he kept many books, clothing and bedding that the servants would take out every night. The time Byakuya spent home, he passed it in the gallery surrounding the garden, reading or talking to Senbonzakura.

His bare feet tapped on the smooth and polished floor, warmed by the sun running like water into the room. He compared it to the wretched little hut that smelled of rotting pine. He imagined the rain that came through the roof on stormy days, the wind whistling through holes in the walls, the mud of autumn and the winter ice, the plethora of insects that were sharing the cabin with them without being invited ...

At seven o'clock he took the road to the kitchens. It was his birthday, he had every right, had he not?

The ride to the clearing took more time than usual because of the large bag he was not used to carry. Seven and a half in mid spring, was an hour he was particularly attached to. The golden rays of the sun crowning newly green trees and the flashing lights through the branches were delightful. Every time the season came around, Byakuya felt reborn with the rest of nature. He hated winter.

Even if there was still daylight Hisana had lit the fire and it crackled merrily in front of their door, their eternal dented teapot hanging from a branch. Nearby, he saw Hisana selecting a few roots to prepare the meal. Near her, there was Rukia who said.

"He's lucky that it's his birthday today.

- Your birthday approaches too, Rukia, he does not celebrate his more often than you do yours. There's just one birthday a year for everyone.

- I'd like it if it were my birthday every day.

- Ah, but the wishes would not work so well.

"Should we really wait a year in between wishes?

- Yes. One can always wish well to someone, but a birthday wish works better, and only if it is done once a year.

- Well." Rukia presented a rough wooden bowl where Hisana set the roots. "I hope he does well for a year and has a very happy birthday. And you?

- Me too, Rukia-chan. I hope it will be a good year for him with much success since he works so hard.

- It is very hard to be a shinigami?

- I have heard that it is."

Byakuya suppressed a smile and refrained from running away at full speed. He did not like these situations. They gave him chills behind the legs and made him feel stupid. He descended from his tree and approached them. Rukia was the first to notice him and also to react. She clamped his knees with all the vigor he was accustomed to shouting lively and enthusiastic "happy birthdays". Hisana followed with a devastating smile on her lips and bowed to him repeating her wishes

"You came to spend your birthday with us?" Bless Rukia for her outspoken spirit, he thought. He looked down to the small girl and said "yes". The air of delighted surprise that was painted on their faces was worth ten times every birthday party in the world. Hisana bent to pick up the wooden bowl and said. "This is a very modest dinner, but it will be ready in a few minutes.

Oh, uh ... "No, don't bother." Carefully think about what you are about to say, Byakuya, do not ridicule yourself. "I brought ... I would not ..." Good. Very well Byakuya. Finally, in desperation, he handed the bag. She took it, looked inside and stared. "You should not have, Byakuya-sama ... it is your birthday after all ...

- Exactly! Each year, they prepare the same things. I wonder whether it is better when shared with people one likes. "They both blushed and he was surprised to find them very cute like that. Then Hisana recovered and took the bag more firmly. "Well in that case, all we will have to wait for is for it to warm up. » They sat around the fire and Hisana installed the dishes on hot stones. Rukia whispered in her ear. "Didn't you say you had to spend your birthday with your family?" Byakuya watched the flames and answered sincerely. "All families are not like you and Hisana, Rukia. Sometimes, we prefer not to be part of it at all.

- Oh. So it is better that you are here with us then. "Byakuya could only agree.

The meal was a success. The evening globally was very good. Byakuya could not remember ever having spent most pleasant moments for his birthday and they did not notice time passing until Rukia leaned against his shoulder and fell asleep with a sigh. He lay her across his legs and he looked at her as she kept on sleeping.

"It was nice to come here tonight." He said sincerely. Then he looked up to Hisana who crouched near the dying fire, stirring the last burning embers. She smiled and replied. "You know, Byakuya-sama ... Rukia and I are very happy to have met you." She bit slightly inside her lip. "Not only for what you did for us. That, anyone generous can do it but also because you spend time with us. You let us know you as a man and you... You are someone valuable. "There was a silence and she laughed quietly. "We're not very strong on words, the both of us, eh? From the three of us only Rukia knows really how to say what is on her mind. What I mean is that you are important to us. Not as heir to your family, lieutenant shinigami, or simply benefactor... You are important as a friend and as a person. Nobody could replace you. "

These words sounded much like a cliché. He felt like they could come out of a romantic novel. And yet, he was touched and flattered by what she said. As if, even if they were a little simple, they told him everything he wanted and needed to hear, and he did not even think of questioning their honesty. He muttered a "thank you", and she received it with a smile. She rose and gently lifted Rukia. He looked up at the sky illuminated with stars. The moon was high, it was really late. "You can stay here if you want." He started, she blushed. "It's late and if you do not want to go home, you may very well make yourself at home... It's not very comfortable, but...

-With pleasure. Thank you." And he followed her.

What happened then was considered the second most significant moment in Byakuya's life. With an enchanting smile, Hisana hoisted herself on tiptoe and kissed him on the cheek. It lasted but a second and it was barely a touch, but he was convinced that his heart stopped beating for five minutes.

When she left him, she had a smile as always and whispered "Happy Birthday, Byakuya-sama." She disappeared into the cabin.

Byakuya did not know what to do for several seconds, then he resumed his thoughts and followed her inside. A very happy birthday indeed. He lay on the pile of ferns covered with the tent cloth the two girls used as a bed. He laid next to Rukia, and the other side of the little girl was Hisana. It smelt very strongly of herbs, it stung and cracked, it flattened under him instantly but he fell asleep in seconds

The next day, for the first time in twenty good years, he rose after the sun.

**

Ukitake-Taisho could not remember the last time there was something that was deemed unusual in his life. And when one lived 2000 years, something unusual, believe it, is noticeable. And this morning, he felt that the day would make a decisive turn in the overall direction the future would follow.

First, he was informed that although the sun had been up for an hour, there was no news of Lieutenant Kuchiki. The captain wondered for a moment whether to start an alert, then decided that if his subordinate had not surfaced before noon, he would slip a hint to the special investigation squads. No reason to kill in the bud a healthy inclination to sleep late.

And then, two hours after sunrise, he heard someone in Byakuya's office. Curious to see what had impeded his lieutenant's ordinary morning, he went to the office, expecting to find Kuchiki Byakuya already at work.

It was not Kuchiki Byakuya.

Kuchiki Ginrei was obviously very upset and ran up and down the office, seeming to expect his grandson to jump out from a drawer. When Ukitake entered the room, Ginrei turned and asked him with all his usual seriousness. "Have you seen Byakuya?

- No, why? Did something serious happen? "Ginrei had no time to answer because the door to the garden opened allowing Byakuya to enter, carrying a stack of paper on which rested a steaming teapot. He looked as flawless as every time Ukitake had seen him, perfectly groomed and wearing his hair carefully attached. He stopped short upon seeing two captains assembled in his office.

"Ukitake-Taisho, Kuchiki-Taisho, what can I do for you?"

The tone was so perfectly composed Ukitake could have thought that the day that would follow was perfectly ordinary. But the air Kuchiki Ginrei had confirmed that there was something serious happening within the Kuchiki household.

What had Byakuya done to have his grandfather in such a state that Ginrei was about to reprimand him in front of a stranger to the family - and a supervisor no less?

"Byakuya." Said Ginrei.

"Kuchiki-Taisho." Said Byakuya. Well, no amnesia. If Byakuya had been inebriated the previous day it had obviously worn off. That was good news. The younger man looked profoundly bored and seemed not to remember what he had done to provoke such a rage. Ukitake was surprised to find him looking rebellious. A Kuchiki? Rebel? No way...

"Where were you last night?"

There it became very interesting and Ukitake's ears perked up. If it had been his birthday the previous night, Byakuya would have had to celebrate at home with his family. However, if Ginrei wanted to know were Byakuya had been all evening, it meant the you man had let everyone standing and left to go somewhere he would be left in peace. Ooh, Shunsui would _love_ it!

"Somewhere. We celebrated my birthday. It does not really concern you." Ginrei obviously reached what - on the Kuchiki scale of anger - was the point of boiling rage. Between clenched teeth, his face set in stone and his eyes throwing fire - Ukitake really did not know how Byakuya could not be reduced to ashes already - he continued. "Then why did you not deign to return to your room once the party was over?"

Ukitake was not sure he had heard correctly. Shunsui would not recover from this. The Kuchiki heir, the golden boy of Soul Society's aristocracy, sleeping out. The event of the century. The gossip of the millennium. There, within his reach.

Byakuya kept a cool head and replied as if nothing had happened. "It was late. Someone offered to house me. If it can reassure you, I slept very well. "

If Ukitake had not feared for his assistant's life, he would have laughed. Kuchiki Byakuya was not a young man like others, but had at least the same problems. Keep his family out of his personal affairs. Ginrei, obviously did not like it. "It is scandalous, Byakuya. It will be known for sure and you have behaved with incredible rudeness to our guests.

- Half of these guests can remember my name only because they want me to marry one of their daughters. The other half of them remembers it because they just borrow money from me. The evening I spent yesterday at least had the advantage of being friendly and cheerful.

- An evening where you had to bring the meal yourself?" Then with a grin. "I went to the kitchens, I was told what you had taken with you." Final crispy detail. With an almost morbid curiosity, Ukitake waited for Byakuya's answer. The eyes of the young man hardened and Ukitake knew why he was resisting so well to his grandfather. Byakuya was positively scary. "It was an experience, Kuchiki-Taisho.

- Well, well, what is this fad?

- I just confirmed that my dinner is ten times better when it is not marred with your company. "

Ukitake too was struck by the insult to react in any other way than opening his eyes and his mouth and gaping like a fish. Like Ginrei who, after regaining his senses gradually took the color of a ripe plum. Byakuya did not give him time to catch on, because he approached his desk, put down the pile of papers and poured himself some tea. "Now, Kuchiki Taisho, if I may, I have a lot of work."

He did not grant any more importance to the two men in the room for a few seconds, after which he raised his eyes to Ukitake and asking most innocuously in the world. "Can I do anything for you, Ukitake-Taisho?"

Kuchiki Ginrei hissed with rage and left the office in a whirlwind. Ukitake looked away, then knelt in front of his Lieutenant. He helped himself to some tea, and the familiar aroma of strong tea came to his nostrils. He twirled his glass between his hands thoughtfully and asked Byakuya.

"Was it really reasonable to put your grandfather in a rage like this?" Byakuya set down his brush and pushed his work aside - Ukitake had never seen him do that before. The heir had a very quiet sigh and seemed to search for words for a moment. "Probably not, Taisho. ... I was thoughtless, I'm afraid. "Ukitake drank a little and continued to observe his young friend. Kuchiki Byakuya was a perfect assistant for him. Responsible, independent, thorough and conscientious, even. And sometimes, Ukitake had trouble remembering he was ten times younger than him, still almost a child. He had not even finished growing. Now that Byakuya had shown a little childish mood swing, and realized the consequences, Ukitake saw on his face things he did not like. The fatigue of a man tired of fighting, not an adolescent exasperation.

"I'll have to I apologize. I'll have to make promises, too, that I did not want to make." He glanced at his captain who showed him that he wished he continued. He sighed more frankly. "If I do not, he will constantly search the people with whom I was last night and could cause them serious problems I not could remedy.

-Trouble ...?

"They could be murdered in their sleep and there would be nothing but my voice against his to seek justice for these murders. Before the Chamber 46, I would have absolutely no weight." Byakuya saw his eyes widen and gave his captain a wry little smile. "So it is." However, his eyes were still shiny with some smoldering anger, he said: "My grandfather had no right to talk about this in front of you. Those are very private affairs.

- I'm very so ...

- Do not apologize, it would be my grandfather's place to make amends to you. He should never have addressed the subject in your presence, that's all.

- Perhaps he was simply worried about your safety... " Here, Byakuya had to admit that the idea amused him deeply. He shook his head. Then he glanced to his captain. He saw the old dark eyes glow with compassion and curiosity. But curiosity in Ukitake Juushiro was something compulsive and uncontrollable. It did not have the greed and indiscretion it took in other, it was just ... interested. Conquered. Almost delighted to learn more. Byakuya decided then that if he were to have a confidant, someone with whom to seek a discrete and well-intentioned ear, he could not find better than Ukitake.

"For years my grandfather has not been afraid for me, Ukitake-Taisho. What he fears are illegitimate heirs." Ukitake's face was so funny he had trouble to restrain a smile. He explained himself. "My father was married when he was very young, to a woman chosen by Kuchiki Chidori, the late wife of my grandfather, as is customary. What you probably do not know is that my grandparents disagreed and Chidori, to annoy her husband, chose a woman who was perfect for my father and that my grandfather hated. She would in no way increase our wealth because she was the youngest in a family of six boys and her father had been the source of costly and humiliating discomfort for the family." Ukitake-Taisho nodded silently.

"Now it is necessary to know that I have an uncle, whose birth caused the death of Kuchiki Chidori, barely older than me, who resides in our estates in the west. This uncle was married recently and I received news that his wife is pregnant. What my grandfather wants to be done is to have the heirs of my uncle inherit the fortune instead of mine. He knows he will not see this project completed, but he would do anything to prevent my mother's blood descendance from taking over our clan. It's already a miracle that my uncle was too young to assert its rights when my parents died. "

Byakuya sighed. One day, he would arrange for his family to live without worrying about internal battles. That his grandfather hoped to see the desmise of his own grandson was bad enough as it was. "Now, if I have an old enough illegitimate son, my grandfather fears that I would leave instructions for he to take after me in case of my untimely death - it is a foolish fear, for it would be going against half of the succession laws. But ... His doubts are sufficient for him to make my life very difficult. "

Ukitake drank his tea in small sips - first because the flavor was very strong but also to pay greater attention to what was revealed by his lieutenant. A doubt entered his mind. "These people ... they have a link with your concerns of a few years ago?" Byakuya looked at him blankly. His concerns? He had a lot of... Oh. These concerns! He scowled. Why had his master such a good memory?

"Yes.

- Oh. And I suppose ... With the tea, too?

- Yes."

Ukitake had a big smile. "Oh. Well if you provide me tea, I am ready to help you!" Byakuya looked at him for a moment without understanding. "... Help me?" Ukitake-Taisho had a conspiratorial grin. "Well ... I do not know… you could suddenly find yourself with lots of training missions outside of Seireitei ... Long missions ... Stuff that departmental administrations concoct generally for those they dislike and are division business rarely discussed with the Gotei 13 Council. "

Kuchiki Byakuya did not smile. He watched his captain with an almost metallic look. This offer was very unprofessional and his dutiful shinigami scruples threw painful and disapproving darts at his conscience. A captain had no right to do what Ukitake was doing. As a Lieutenant he had no right to accept what his captain suggested.

He breathed deeply. It was tempting though. He felt Senbonzakura curl heavily in a corner of his mind. _What will you do, Byakuya?_ _What to do ? Where is your faith?_

Good question. Where was his faith? With his duty he had sworn to do or alongside Hisana and Rukia whom he deeply appreciated? He pondered for a moment what he knew of Shinigami, samurai warriors and their families. No matter how much he hated the way people lived within his clan, he always turned to them to answer his doubts. Kuchiki had the values he would follow throughout his life, whether he liked it or not. He met the eyes of his captain and shook his head slightly, serene. His duty was with the Shinigamis and his faith was with Hisana and her sister.

" Do not not bother, sir."

Ukitake looked surprised but hid it quickly. "Ah, well. I would like some more tea with you, Byakuya-kun." Byakuya nodded, and poured.

After his captain departed, Byakuya contemplated for a moment the resolutions he was preparing to take. He would see less of Hisana and Rukia, at the idea, his heart sank. It was for their safety. It would only last half a century, at worst. He looked down to the report he had started to read, and noticed that the characters were blurred. He contracted his fingers on his brush and the handle broke. The brush fell on the desk, leaving a large black streak on the pale wood. He closed his eyes and focused on the anger that seethed in his veins, not noticing the tears of rage glistening in his eyes.

His grandfather would pay. He would renew his attention, constantly watch his back, what he ate, the organization of security within his apartments. It was out of the question he'd leave his grandfather achieve his ends. He would not die before him.

**

He had not seen his grandfather since he had apologized to the Council of the clan. Life with Kuchiki Ginrei had never been easy. The man was demanding, proud, determined. A bit like Byakuya in fact, making the battle a little easier, because Byakuya knew exactly how his grandfather would react.

Senbonzakura stood guard.

She slept very rarely originally and had been watching since Byakuya and Ginrei and had left their disagreement appear in broad daylight.

He had seen Hisana and Rukia only once in the year after the famous birthday. He missed them every day a little more. Their sincerity, their kindness and their undoubted affection for him. All these new things he had discovered since he had met them. Sometimes at night, at the time the sun would go down and stroke the golden treetops, that the wind would rustle the branches and foliage, he would think it was the time when he usually began his journey to join them. He wondered if they also raised their eyes to the trees, thinking that was the time that he usually arrived at.

Every evening storm, he would hope more fervently than before that they were safe and that their cabin withstood the blow.

The day of the visit he had made some months earlier, he had stayed later than usual. First, because he wanted to further postpone the time when he should say goodbye, but also because he wanted to explain to Hisana what was pushing him to stay away from them. He told Rukia that he was transferred to the living world, but he saw that the child had not been fooled. He would however give the choice to Hisana to reveal to her sister that he was putting them in danger. He waited. When the night was comfortably settled, he sat beside Hisana by the dying fire. They remained silent for a moment, and he remembered what she had told him weeks ago. "We are not very strong on words, the both of us."

How true it was!

How should he make her understand?

How to make her share the deep concern - even fear - that bit him when he thought of his clan leader's power and what he could do when Byakuya could not even open his mouth to protest. How to make Hisana believe, that he was not exaggerating just to get rid of an embarrassing relationship? After a long silence, he took his courage in both hands. She was a gentle soul, she would not take his blunders in an ill way - at least he hoped.

"My family is dangerous, Hisana. Are you… aware?

- We suspected it, I must confess. But the power of the kind of family you come from is not easily imagined. It's very remote here, that sort of things seems so far away. When I was on Earth, I was myself part of a fairly prominent family but I must admit I am ignorant how nobility works in the Soul Society." It was a surprise. He had never really concerned himself with who they were on Earth, since they had been part of Soul Society for some time when he had first met them. Moreover, he himself was born here. He had never set foot on earth before his first mission as special shinigami. So Hisana had not been just any human. "What was your name?

-Sagikara. "

He commited the name to his memory.

He felt he did not really need to continue. He put his hand on that of Hisana and leaned a little to stir the embers. The light was revived when the glowing coals met with the slightly cool breeze, casting a brief flash on Hisana's resigned face. "I ... I will not be able to come as often as before, Hisana. I made mistakes and those mistakes ... mistakes that endanger the two of you."

Hisana said nothing and he knew he had been perfectly understood. The errors mentioned by Byakuya, she could guess them, she probably knew them already. He was the young, fragile heir of one of the most powerful families in Soul Society. It was not difficult to guess that there was at least one powerful figure of his family who wanted him out of the way.

She took his hand in hers and squeezed gently. They had eternity to solve their problems. She was patient and Rukia would learn to be. "Take care of yourself, Byakuya-sama. I hope to see you again one day healthy, happier than I see you now." He patted her hand, a little too embarrassed to find something coherent to say. He'd probably never get used to the gusts of frenzy that seized him whenever he was near her.

He fumbled in his sleeves. He was confident enough for her to remain healthy until they got rid of the threat of his grandfather but he would not trust Rukongai to enable them to live comfortably until he could take care of them again. He took the purse he had hidden there before leaving home and slipped it into Hisana's sleeve. She stared at him, outraged. That was all his pension for months to come. All that he would be authorized to spend personally to maintain his apartment, his clothes, what he would consume away from home in terms of food and equipment. The sum seemed enormous, but the functioning of his house in the mansion required a lot of money. The fact that he would be unable to pay his household for several months would require him to function only on the service provided to guests of the noble property. He would recieve meals in the common areas, they would take care of his laundry and clean up his room but that was all. In no way would he have the right to access the family bathroom, the training room, private gardens ... Unable to pay their maintenance. He should relie entirely on the offered rooms of the 13th Division. Ukitake Taisho would probably have no objection to his lieutenant residing there 17h on 24h, for training and renovation work on the barracks infrastructure.

He met Hisana's insulted gaze, deciphering perfectly in her eyes to be kept so. She straightened up and thrust her hand into her sleeve, taking out the pouch and holding it out, refusing to take the very clear offer he made. The gifts he brought them, she could accept, because they were modest and the evidence of friendship but money ... She had learned not to deny the opportunities, but this ... It was worse than anything he could do. She was not a woman that was remunerated for her sympathies. He closed her hands on the gold. His face lit only by the amber lights of the dying fire was only half visible and his profile seemed strangely softened by the red and gold glow. "I beg you, Hisana. I do not think ill of you, I just want to help." His voice was low, muffled, a bit harsh because he was not accustomed to whisper. For a split second, she saw in this late teenager, still unpolished in his last growth spurt, the great man he would one day become. She saw the tired and experienced Lord, she saw the veteran warrior and the great power he would wield some day through his very fingertips. And this man saw her as a priceless treasure and secret. Then, without saying anything, she lowered her eyes and hid the purse in her sleeve, promising herself that she would not use it less Rukia fell ill and needed expensive care. Otherwise, she would do as she had promised to do. With courage and honor, as she had learned from birth.

**

The day that marked three years since the last time he saw Rukia and Hisana was a day shy of spring, just before the plum blossom would bloom. It rained all day and Byakuya stood quietly next to open windows in his office, savoring his last tea leaves and drawing in the least productive day of the year. Unbeknown to him, Ukitake slipped from time to time an eye in his office, watching curiously his subordinate during what seemed to be _his_ day of depression. The year before and the one before too, had noticed the slightly nozy captain, just before the coronation of spring, Byakuya would take a day to honor a mysterious mourning.

He had noticed that the young man had invested more in the life of his division. It was rare to see a training class where he was not involved, as well as ligering files, forgotten appointments or missed meetings... it was disturbing. To his knowledge, Byakuya practiced more and more alone - what he had come to regard as the moment when he would join the mysterious friends. He remained at the dojo of the division and it was not uncommon for him to stay the night in the rooms that were reserved for his use.

The young man was not only involved in the duties of Gotei 13. Some inventories Ukitake had glimpsed on his lieutenant's desk were clearly statements of private property. This had confirmed his suspicions that the young Kuchiki undertook more in his family than he had before.

And then, there had been the bodyguard. Well, the body_guard__s__._

They were men dressed in blue so dark it could pass for black and wore a badge from one of the largest domain the Kuchiki family owned. Ukitake had seen only one, once, but he knew that such men were moving like ninja squads of four or five men each. When he had asked his lieutenant to explain, Byakuya had shrugged and said they were a loan from one the Elders of his family that was loyal enough to ensure his safety until his own clan's intervention units were under his control and no longer under that of his grandfather. He then explained the complicated and terribly constraining alliances and liabilities that governed this type of loan. When Ukitake asked how long they had been loaned Byakuya shrugged his shoulders again and replied 'as long as it is necessary'.

Ukitake discovered things he had thought never to see one day. Coming from a modest family, he had arrived where he was now with his determination and hard work. But he knew that, although captain, some things were forever inaccessible to him. The nobility was one of those things. Irrespective of the merits, these people. Only birth mattered. One should have been raised among them to understand them. One had to have this indescribable thing that was a noble soul, the slight glow to the skin surface and the ingenuity of movement making it inconceivable to be anything but perfectly balanced, measured, educated and straight in his ideals and convictions. Ukitake could be as wise, educated and polite as he wished he would never be whom he was not supposed to be. Somehow, he suspected _Him_ to choose his nobles.

The emperor was a subject that Byakuya had never breached with Ukitake and the Captain did not know whether it was because his lieutenant was obliged not to talk about it or if it was simply that Byakuya saw this as an issue they had not had to deal with yet. Still, he had an inexhaustible curiosity about the man who directed all living and dead. And Byakuya had had to meet Him in person at least once in his life, as part of one of Soul Society's most honorable and ennobled four families.

But for now, Byakuya was bidding his time. What he was waiting for nobody knew – apart from Senbonzakura, of course, but Ukitake was convinced that Byakuya's silence was minimal compared to that of his zanpakuto. He was quiet, sad and alone. And Ukitake could not help but watch the sparks that shoot out of the fire still smoldering. Because if Byakuya was calm, and tired, he had a fire burning in his belly, immense power, that of his soul and spirit. It was not for nothing after all, that he was touted as being one of the most powerful Shinigami that Gotei 13 had known since its inception.

Ginrei Kuchiki had resumed its usual administration of the sixth division. Still as uncompromising, always powerful, but severe to a point where some feared he would break. But the Kuchiki patriarch held on ; leading his shinigamis and his clan with an iron hand.

The months passed. They turned into years. Under the astonished eyes of Ukitake - he had already seen such a transformation many times, but the show lost nothing of its charm - his young Lieutenant was transformed gradually from an adolescent into a man. He finished growing. His shoulders widened and he became the robust size of a warrior instead of a thin child. Everything in him began to breath strength, power, like so many other Shinigami before him. Ukitake thought that once again, the miracle of life was taking place and that age became Byakuya quite well. Then, after twenty-five years, everything calmed down, and the growth ceased. It seemed printed in stone that Kuchiki Byakuya had finished aging and that his soul had found the age that suited him better.

**

One morning, Ukitake watched his subordinate and found quieter than usual.

Feeling observed, Byakuya stood up and met the eyes of his captain. Then he returned to his primary occupation, to decide what punishment to impose the surveillance squad he had discovered heavily drunk behind the barracks this morning.

When he heard his captain leave the room, he quickly scribbled three very cruel punishments who would do nothing to help make him more popular. Then he pushed the pile of basically useless reports still awaiting his signature before leaving for Division One a little on the side. In their place, he laid a thick bundle of financial records and transactions.

All these years he had kept quiet on the business perspective. As he had not yet been invested of his inheritance, and he had virtually no authority over the administration of his estate. Until the Council decided otherwise, his grandfather would be responsible for the Kuchiki clan assets and their investment. But Kuchiki Byakuya had celebrated his 230 th birthday a few days ago and was preparing to visit some of the most noble members of the Council to gently move his inheritance from the hands of his grandfather to his. He therefore procured inventories, investment statements, the full financing leases made to their vassals, accounts, debts, investments ... He had to prove he could perform both functions at Gotei 13 and administer the property of the family better than his grandfather.

By dint of study, he found a mystery.

It was a tradition on the part of a couple newly formed among Kuchiki - the latest being Kuchiki Yogi and Chihiro - to set aside money not for their offspring but to the heirs of said offspring.

Besotted, enthusiastic, young and almost naive in the affection and trust they had for the new idea of family, the young couple had been generous with their future grandchildren. According to custom, Kuchiki Yogi had prepared the gift the future wife of his firstborn son would receive. It was a sum of money varying with generations, which was used to arrange the apartments of the bride to be and for her installation and dressing, to cover everything that could be desired during the first months of her marriage. The money was carefully recorded and would remain untouchable until the actual marriage of the heir.

Theoretically.

The money, Byakuya had discovered, had simply vanished into the maze of financial transactions that had held place within the clan. It was hard to believe, as the sum had appeared positively gargantuan when revealed - it was also why he was so popular with women, the generosity of his late father for his future daughter-in-law was not a secret. How the equivalent gains of a year had been lost was a mystery.

He then proceeded to repeat the out of the ordinary spending bills to see who was dumb enough to squander a treasure untouchable in principles. There were many different investments that were unstable. Donations offered for no reasons – small sums each time - in sectors even he knew he had to avoid putting too much money in. Banking, maintenance, administration, operating costs ... Those responsible for these budgets absorbed money like a sponge absorbed water. And they had received far more than usual, if he believed his calculations.

He continued his laborious task until he had proof of who had given access to funds so important. He suspected the Council could open vaults without taking care and if so, he would demand that they open their own to recreate the sum that his father had wanted to give the mother of his grandchildren.

The reality was quite different.

**

When he left his grandfather, he fully realized the challenge he had given himself. An interview with the Emperor was not really what he wanted yet. There were all these things he needed to learn and the administration of the Thirteenth Division to take care of ; and significant detail that he could not do everything at once.

He could not be Shinigami Lieutenant and the Kuchiki family's head at the same time. Observing how his Grandfather combined the two obligations was a good enough hint that it could not be managed. It was out of question that as an officer he would become distracted and sloppy. His grandfather's age protected him from sanction, but within his division, with the failing health of his own captain, Byakuya knew he could not afford to ignore his duty to the Gotei 13.

He wondered what he was going to tell the Emperor. The man - was he really human? - had always seemed well intentioned towards him, but his conduct was so detached from the movements of court it could not sufficient to remove the favor of the sovereign from his Grandfather to him. He suddenly regretted not having been to the imperial court a little more often. His grandfather attended the Council of Nobility every month, as a clan leader, if he ever was appointed in his place, he would have to do the same - the Kuchiki family were the noblest and most powerful of the Soul Society - which promised an additional range of problems.

Well. He had an interview to prepare. What would be asked for him to prove that Kuchiki Ginrei was in the wrong and that he had stolen from a woman who did not yet exist - the future mistress of the Kuchiki house - a sum of money that would make the eyes of any standard family shine with covetousness?

He also had to notify his division that he would be absent for some time.

**

Ukitake was worried. Byakuya had disappeared for nearly a fortnight and although he had made an application for his leave, to stay away so long without giving news was disturbing. The division had coped well with the absence of its very effective lieutenant, mainly because the said Lieutenant had left on the desk of the third and fourth officer, a directory of instructions thick as the trunk of a young and vigorous tree. Ukitake did not know to what extent this directory was involved in the management of the division, but he'd seen many officers studying the index more than once. He was dying of curiosity to have a look himself.

He had heard of the stormy meeting that had taken place in the quarters of the sixth division. He did not know what to think, for an interview with the Emperor seemed quite excessive as a mean of solving problems.

Suddenly, a commotion was heard in the hall leading to his office. He could hear his third and fourth officer try to restore calm, until a very loud voice was heard - Ukitake thought he recognized the voice of one of the messengers of the Court of Pure Souls, they all had the same little rising emphasis on the trailing syllables.

Indeed, a few seconds later, a thin man, rather tall, pale and stiff with fatigue and anguish knelt in front of him to greet him. Fist firmly on the ground to support his entire body, he almost cried. "Ukitake-Taisho, it is crucial that you be informed of the death of Kuchiki-Taisho of the Sixth Division," This was completely unexpected.

"What? How ?! "

The messenger swallowed. "Taisho, Kuchiki-sama was defeated by Kuchiki Byakuya during a duel."

The surprise was too strong for Ukitake to do anything but stand still trying to calm the beating of his heart. Byakuya killed Ginrei. How the feud between two direct member of the same family - two members of the same blood! - could reach this terrible point? The murder of one by another. Oh, he did not want to imagine the trouble Byakuya was in now. How ... How could they find themselve in a situation where fighting was the only solution ? He could not believe that the Council has approved of such a confrontation. Byakuya would land in terrible problems...

"The duel was ordered by the Emperor, Taisho. Kuchiki Byakuya and Kuchiki Ginrei fought in the imperial arena."

It was worse than anything. Ukitake stood up and took the way to the Kuchiki residence in northern Seireitei.

**

Byakuya was in the small temple at the far end of the garden, not far from the confines of the property. He conversed with Senbonzakura.

The fifteen days that had elapsed since he left the division 13 had been the most uncomfortable and most stressful of his life. His appearance before the Emperor, flanked by his two most fervent supporters in the Council of the family, against his grandfather, was to remain as one of the most traumatic event of his life.

It went well, he supposed. It could have been worse. For him.

The duel had been unexpected. It had been ordered by the Emperor, when Kuchiki Ginrei had prevailed and claimed that Byakuya was incompetent in every way to combine both functions of Shinigami and head of his household. The Emperor had interrogated Byakuya in private in front of four of His most discreet advisers. He did not say what he thought of the young nobleman. He had merely nodded carefully and dismissed Byakuya. The answer, in a sense, arrived the next day in the early morning, as an invitation to a duel.

Byakuya had therefore been faced with his grandfather in the arena of gray stone which was used to train the Imperial Guards and parades reviews. It was an average length, carefully paved with dark polished pebbles and bordered by a wide wooden railing painted in red.

Byakuya had felt afraid. It was useless to hide it, even though he had won, because it was the truth. Kuchiki Ginrei was not weak, far away from it. He was a captain. And even if it had not been enough to encourage Byakuya to be cautious Ginrei was his _grandfather._ His blood, his flesh.

His clan.

And a messenger came to warn them that it was a duel to the death. Ginrei was not even startled. Trying with all his might not to seem too feverish, he had drawn his zanpakuto and had taken place. Feet firmly spaced, almost square and aligned with the axis of his shoulders. His kimono was light, comfortable and there was not a breath of wind.

And Ginrei died.

Byakuya was therefore in the Ancestors Temple in the Kuchiki residence of Seireitei. He watched carefully the shining monument honoring the memory of his grandfather. He saw his reflection in it, slightly wavy. Above his head, holding onto the locks of fine and dark hair, was the white kenseikan.

When he imagined his arrival at the head of his clan, he had never imagined a resolution as violent and categorical. He had always thought that his grandfather would withdraw and would take place in the council of elders. It was of course without mentioning the tenacity - the stubbornness - of Kuchiki Ginrei to keep control of his family. Ginrei should have felt the wind change when the Emperor had asked for a duel. This meant that Byakuya had passed the test that Ginrei thought he would fail. And somehow, Byakuya assumed that although he was almost paralyzed with terror, Ginrei should have known he would not die. Byakuya's reiatsu was high, huge, overwhelming, telling them he was prepared to face anything. Even without Bankai, an objective eye could tell who would emerge victorious of this duel. Ginrei had neglected his warlord duties for too long.

And Byakuya's faith was not in his clan. Ginrei was in danger.

"But enough excuses," said Senbonzakura. Ginrei is dead, dead, cremated and scattered according to the rites and celebrated. Now it was time to move on.

He had sworn allegiance. The provinces which he administered had sent gifts - he wrote a letter to each of these provinces. It was a very formal welcoming ceremony. It had changed his apartments - he had opened up more rooms and closed off the wing where he lived from visitors. The personal guard of his clan had sworn allegiance. He had provided a tedious amount of signatures and approvals. He had the kenseikan pinned in his hair.

He should get used to it, he supposed - Senbonzakura thought this tradition was weird - after seeing it in his grandfather's hair for so long. A simple little ivory ornament for such a heavy meaning. The mark of the emperor's protegee.

He had not sent the news to the Gotei 13, but he knew he could not escape for long. The leave he had arranged for may imply that he was not obliged to report to the division but the rumors - and especially the confirmation – of Kuchiki-Taisho's death would necessarily create turmoil.

He did not want to worry about all that. He wanted to roll into a ball under his blankets and not move away for a very, very long time. It was childish and ridiculous but it was useless to hide it. Senbonzakura sneered at the back of his skull.

Actually, no. There was one thing he wanted above all, and it was seeing Hisana again. And Rukia.

It had been over 29 years now. And Ginrei had died, he had every right to refresh his relationship with them.

Discreetly - but not too much - a servant approached from behind and said in a calm and deferential voice. "Master, Ukitake-Taisho requests an interview."

Byakuya knew perfectly well that his captain was likely to visit him as soon as the circumstances of the late captain of the sixth division's death would be made public. However his supervisor's quickness of reaction surprised him.

He met Ukitake in the small living room near his apartment. He brought tea and cakes that his taisho was particularly fond of. Ukitake watched him a moment after kneeling in front of him, noting the kenseikan and simple kimono.

"How are you, Byakuya-kun?"

Byakuya sighed and averted his eyes. He did not really know how to answer this question. He was fine, physically speaking. Mentally, it would be better once he had found Hisana and Rukia. Now he had decided to renew the bonds between them, he could hardly wait.

"Not too bad, I think. I need time. All this is very sudden. I did not expect to have to take care of everything at once, and I do not know if my load for Gotei 13 will not be too much for me. "Ukitake stared. Byakuya did not give him time to protest or ask a question. "I can not take care of everything, Ukitake-Taisho. You saw how my grandfather ended up managing his division. And his work with the clan was no good either. "

Ukitake left his comment unheard. He had forgotten that Ginrei was the first single son of the principal Kuchiki family in several millennia. Extremely rigid, a trifle ambitious and with an ego as big as Soul Society, Ginrei had in his mind to pursue two careers at once when the original military duty and family burden were shared between two brothers. Yogi, Byakuya's father had been pushed to the Gotei 13 by his father, and Byakuya ....

Ukitake suspected Byakuya was pushed by Senbonzakura. It was fortunate, because without the rigorous shinigami trainings, Byakuya's phenomenal mental strength would have been a danger instead of the tremendous asset it had become.

Byakuya cleared his throat.

"I need time, Captain. I'm sorry to impose on you to operate without me but I must talk more with my Council and the Emperor's to know what I must do. Besides they will want at any price that I get married soon.

- Pardon?" Byakuya did not give the impression of being very concerned with that in the recent years. No rumor had ever tainted hisrecord and his behavior towards women was almost cold. And why would the Council be suddenly anxious? His astonishment painted itself on his face and Byakuya continued abruptly.

"I am the head of the family now. If I die, there is absolutely no heir. The first step of the Emperor after the death of my grandfather was to prohibit any succession to the branch of my uncle's family. This poses a danger of civil war if I die without children. Although I'd rather wait a little while, it is necessary that I worry about a descendance."

Only Byakuya could talk about this without blushing. Seriously. Shiba Kaien, newlywed and very liberated shinigami could not broach the subject of his wife without stuttering.

However, we could detect the discomfort in the somewhat rigid posture of the young man. Byakuya could talk about having children in public without blushing, but ...

"Anyway, nothing is done. It also requires that I meet two of my main provinces to discuss the best way to recover the money my grandfather spent without permission.

- That's what it was all about? The audience with the Emperor?

- Yes."

Ukitake quieted. He had thought earlier of how Byakuya had grown in recent years. But how Byakuya stood now in seiza, very stiff, rejuvenated by the civilian kimono he wore, he also recalled how young Byakuya could be. How much life could still hold for him. Of course, two-hundred and thirty years was not young, but Byakuya was still a youngster in his eyes. And he exuded a kind of impatience that made him curl his toes.

Ukitake smiled. Then his mobile phone rang. Very useful little things. He apologized and anwered. There was a situation in one or the Rukongais which was serious enough to warrant the intervention of a captain.

He stood up and announced. "There is a situation in Rukongai. I wish you a good day, Byakuya-kun. Farewell and do not worry about that leave. Takes all the time you need."

Ukitake took his leave.

Byakuya finished his tea, then stood up.

Yes, there were many things to do. But first, Hisana and Rukia.

**

Redo the way to the hut was a breeze. He had run on it so often, a few years ago, that his feet found naturally the right way again. It was a glorious afternoon, the weather was fine, the wind was warm and fragrant and, although much remained to be done, he finally had control over what happened.

At the very moment he set foot in the clearing, he knew that something was wrong.

The place was abandoned.

The garden had proliferated, weeds and invasive plants climbing the walls and had even grown on the stubble. The door had fallen and one animal had obviously stayed a time in the devastated interior. The mud and silt had filled the holding tank in the stream.

It had been many years since Hisana and Rukia had lived there.

A huge hole seemed to appear in his heart. Senbonzakura was mad with rage. _How,_ how could this happen?

Where was she?

One moment, a horrible thought crossed his mind. What if Kuchiki Ginrei had found them without letting him know ? He searched frantically for signs of struggle, remains, anything - but it had been too long.

He raised the door and sighed with relief.

_Dear Byakuya-sama. It has been thirteen years since we've not seen you._ _I found a job in the Rukongai 23 which is paid enough for us to move, Rukia and me._ _You are quite welcome to join us when you've solved your problems._ _Just ask for Rukia and Hisana from the Lake school._ _People will know what you mean._

_Rukia and Hisana_

They had left a message carved into the wood. It was devoured by insects, bent, rotted, but clear enough for him to read easily.

It was simple after all. And a walk in the Rukongai would go quite unnoticed, because he was wearing a regular kimono - it was not uncommon to see someone walk around with a sword, Senbonzakura would not designate him as someone not belonging where he would be. He was getting under way – make it that they have not changed location in the meantime! - When his phone rang.

**

Ishiguro Komesuke was very annoyed. Fifteenth officer of the Thirteenth Division, modest, conscientious and discreet, she found herself invested with a mission that was taking its toll on her main flaw, her shyness. She looked for a quiet spot in the Rukongai's ruins. She opened the Lieutenants Rescuer Book on her knees, who had been written, according to legend, in one night by Kuchiki Byakuya before he had taken the mysterious leave - well, not so mysterious anymore. Initially, he had given it the simple title of 'Manual'. But the fourth and third officer had used and quoted it so often that the rest of the division - and a few others from other divisions - had come to designate the book by the name of 'Rescuer Book'. Lieutenants of other divisions were also encouraged to consult the book by their respective captains. The lieutenant of the sixth division, now without a superior and somewhat helpless against the amount of work he had to see done, had virtually taken up residence in the Thirteenth Division's quarters, in order to consult the Rescuer Book more easily.

She opened the Book – it was the first time she had the right to approach the book so closely – to the chapter dubbed "Extreme Urgency".

It was the shortest of all the chapters, at the very end of the book. There was a line saying: "Call me." Then a phone number, and finally: "Any abuse will be punished."

She shuddered. Well, no use delaying it. She turned to the front. A other division had been called in to the rescue but the Menos Grande reappeared as fast as the officers suppressed them. The losses were very important and Division Four had trouble keeping the rhythm - it was very far from their headquarters, after all. All this, of course, would not constitute an "Extreme Urgency" but a few seconds ago, a new element had swung the situation from difficult to critique. Ukitake Taisho was injured. There was no one to assume full authority over the troops.

Firmly, she took a deep breath and dialed the number.

"Hello?" Oh, lord, that was he! Kuchiki Byakuya! The Kuchiki Byakuya! She had him on the phone! --

_Uh!_ _Yes, I'm sorry to disturb you, Kuchiki-fukutaisho-sama, Ichiguro Komesuke, fifteenth officer in the unit!_ _Sorry to bother you!_

"What's going on?" What is it going on ? We're all panicking here ! --

_The situation here is catastrophic fukutaisho-Kuchiki-sama, Captain Ukitake was injured and taken away from the battlefield, and the Third officer Sasuko and Fourth officer Tei told me to call you because they can not handle the whole situation, and with the Menos Grande, and ... and ..._

"Where are you?"

_South of 23 __th__ Rukongai, Kuchiki-fukutaisho-sama._

"I'm here in five minutes."

And nothing more.

_Menos Grande_ ... ... _23__th__ Rukongai..._

_I found a job in the Rukongai 23 ..._

Byakuya felt himself grow cold, like when he imagined that his grandfather had discovered Hisana and Rukia.

If he did not hurry, he might discover that all these years of waiting had been in vain.

**

Rukia pulled so hard on Renji's hand, she felt that her arm was going to be ripped off after the bone suddenly dislocated from her shoulder. The feeling was very unpleasant. "Go ... One more step, Renji! A push by the heel, as ...

"I can _not!_ My foot is broken! "Rukia turned toward the young teen she was dragging behind her. His entire right leg was blue. The foot was a heap of flesh swollen and red. He was breathless, red, bruised and weak. He cried a bit, too, but that she would never point out. An explosion occurred on the right. They screamed and were thrown against a pile of debris.

If her shoulder was not dislocated already, at least it was broken now. Rukia suppressed a sob. It _hurt!_ She glanced at Renji. He was pale as death, his injured leg was bent, but not in the right direction. A further explosion and they were covered with dust and mud. Completely unrecognizable.

She tried to sit up and saw stars before her vision whitened. She froze. She could not pass out now. She had to get back on her feet to help Renji. She heard the shouts of Shinigamis somewhere behind them.

They did what they could, but since the white-haired captain had been evacuated from the battlefield they behaved like a snake without its head. Rukia decided she would not faint when she rose. She got up. A gigantic black shape stood before her. Farther away, she saw similar shapes, surrounded by outlandish Hollows. Their raucous cries and claims echoed in the plain of rubble. She leaned forward and seized Renji with her good arm. She pulled with all her might, and eventually got him up, trembling, but clearly determined. They went limping to the front line, to go back behind the Shinigami teams. The floor was uneven, and they had lost their shoes long ago. It had been a long time since she had walked barefoot. And Renji weighed on her back. "Go, Renji ... One more step ... one ..."

There was an earthquake. She risked a glance. The gigantic black shape _glided_ toward them. "Renji, another ... The spirit in the body, the foot, mind in the foot and ... and ..."

To her great shame, it was she who collapsed. A piece of stone was thrown and hit her behind the knee. The pain hit her like a hammer and she folded with a cry. Renji collapsed beside her with a groan. No, _no_ ...

The giant black approached more and more ...

Nononononono. ... Already, a long bony arm reached down from the figure and she felt a wave of cold air reach them, the nagging whine of the creature turned into malicious snarls and a spark flashed red at the bottom of the blank white mask's orbits.

No.

_No._

She felt herself seized under the armpits and lifted off the ground with infinite violence. Everything was a bizarre and sickening blur for a few seconds. Then she was placed gently on a pile of upturned earth soft and moist. She closed her eyes and savored her last seconds of life. The smell of fresh earth was pleasantly musty and reminded her of the little hut's inside, lost in the forest. This was not a bad memory. Better to die with it there than with the image of a pale and mutilated Renji.

She opened her eyes and saw the clear silhouette of a man in a beige kimono and hakama, who looked at the giant black shape rising his weapon. The sword had burst clear and fluid in that seemed a thousand lights shining in the dust raised by the fighting.

The man was showing his back to her, and she gazed for a moment at his black shoulder length hair, very smooth and fine. He was tall. Broad-shouldered, strong, slim hips for a man his size. He turned slightly and looked over his shoulder. And it was him. The same dark and piercing eyes, his face long and pale, aquiline nose.

Byakuya-nii-sama.

He was _there._

Byakuya turned back towards the Menos Grande and let the vengeful anger that boiled gently in his soul invade his whole body. The spiritual pressure at the surface of his skin grew and soon formed a blurry cloud around him. Other Menos Grande turned, puzzled.

How dare they? How dare they invade Soul Society? Attacking innocent souls? _Rukia?_ The spiritual power of the terrifying lieutenant broke over the battlefield.

They attacked _Rukia._

They _injured_ Rukia.

The pressure became unbearable.

_Senbonzakura._

Kill.

Annihilate.

Destroy.

_They_ had put Rukia in _danger._

_Senbonzakura!_

The blade sang when he swung at them and his arms filled with a new force.

"Bankai!" He said. Strongly. So loud that his throat ached.

"Senbonzakura Kageyoshi"

The blade disintegrated into a billion blades.

It was exhilarating, all this power. Each parcel of his conscious mind was a weapon.

In a flutter of eyelashes, a tide of razor-sharp knives covered the battlefield and dead silence invaded the site.

When things subsided, Hollows and Menos Grande had disappeared.

**

Hisana was sitting on a pile of rubble, just behind the security line that Shinigami had stretched between the 'safe' part and the affected part of the city. Rukia and she lived in a small house a few streets away and was almost a miracle that it had been spared. The small school near the Lake however, had not been so lucky. It caught fire after the brazier warming it had fallen ; and no one wanted to linger to extinguish the fire.

She did not hate the city life. After a century in the forest, wandering with Rukia on her back, she was happy to return to civilization, where she could find friends, other young women her age. Few had the same concerns than her, but it was nice to have companions other than her little sister. Rukia was not as enthusiastic. She grew up climbing trees all day, bathing naked in the river and ran barefoot everywhere. She liked the calm and silence of the deep forests, the solitude and safety that trees provided. Hisana was also sometimes nostalgic of those days.

Rukia had hated Hisana for a few months. Maybe even a few years.

One morning, exasperated, Hisana shouted at her to go to hell, or to be a little grateful for her sister who worked herself to the bone for her. Rukia had inflated her cheeks, turned and slammed the door. She had not returned for four years.

In fact, Rukia had lost herself. She had sought to return to the cabin in the woods and could not find the way. She arrived, after much wandering in an unpleasant neighborhood called Inuzuri. There she met Renji. Abarai Renji.

When Hisana first met Renji, she was appalled by the boy's rudeness, a young boy was the same age as her sister and almost the same development as Hisana's younger brother when he was married. A child who had begun to grow and was already strutting his shoulders a little.

He had visited more slums. Those Hisana had fled as soon as possible.

He shared with Rukia what he ate when he found something to eat, the rotten fruits, stale nuts, hard or moldy roots. He called her all the names he knew to have left her little protected haven - people who managed to escape were so rare! And Rukia would not budge. She flew, she ran, trained to become a shinigami where she would fly on her own, finally.

Rukia was determined to never be this burden Hisana had accused her of being. It was true that Hisana worked hard, sacrificed much and came back broken from long days at school where she taught. She started long before daybreak to prepare food for the youngest and only returned late at night when she had finished looking after the garden. All so that Rukia could eat what was best. No canned or dried vegetables, no bitter roots, no insipid tubers. Rukia was the best nourished child of Rukongai 23.

But Hisana, too, spent less time with Rukia. She talked with other women, took care of lots of other children, fed half of their street provided they were allowed to remain in their small house and protected when there were bandits in town. Rukia could not stay as much as she wanted outside to enjoy the quiet of the night. She was to help in the household, every day a little more, studying the stained and thin books Hisana had found, she could no longer sing loudly when she was happy or spend long hours lying on the floor to contemplate the sky. So she preferred to rid Hisana of her mouth to feed - Hisana did not _need_ to eat - and of her good conscience, and disappeared.

There was also another thing that had Rukia exasperated with her sister. It was the long minutes she spent at night at the window contemplating the dusty street from where they had arrived. Rukia knew very well what Hisana awaited.

He would not come. Hisana said she had to be patient. Rukia had been patient. One year, two years, five years, ten years ... And then when Hisana had deeply engraved a message on their door before they left the woods, Rukia had realized that she was not waiting anymore.

She did not doubt the affection he had had for them, or risks that had him distance himself but she knew she should not expect a miracle. Without having met many, Rukia suspected that souls were easily forgotten. Thirteen years after saying goodbye, would he try to approach them again? And for what?

Rukia grew, and the city made her cynical. She saw men pursue women, women cry when men left them. She saw the disapproving looks when a man and a woman passed in the street. So what was her sister waiting for if not a broken heart? Marriage? The fairy tale? It was good for Rukia to imagine when she was small, it was not enough when she was grown. Nii-sama would not return. And it was sometimes difficult even to contemplate his memory without rancor.

She told her sister not to have any illusions. Hisana had been wounded, and had refused to speak to her sister for a few days.

Hisana had to leave looking for Rukia to beg her to come back.

It did not take so long. They were so much alike that it was sufficient to ask people if they had passed anyone with a face like her own.

Hisana found Rukia emaciated, wild haired and slender. Aged. Free. Wispy. She had asked her with all her strenth - a plea, really - if she would come back. They would return to the cabin if it was really too hard, but she begged her to try. To regain faith in humans.

How could she become shinigami if she did not want to protect humans?

Hisana did not know these four years had been enough for Rukia to make peace with what she could not change. She was ready for life in community. And she was hungry. For everything. For Hisana's vegetables she knew how to grow on the little water they could buy, for the books she had read, for the quietness of the house, for its cleanliness, for the woman's life Hisana could offer her.

She had long despised docile, quiet, discreet women, not knowing that her sister was one of those as she was the only one she knew. Realizing Hisana was one of those weak models she imagined with disdain was hard. Hisana lowered her eyes when a man looked at her, never spoke first in a meeting, never imposed her opinion, allowed other to bypass her in the queues to water store, knew not how to respond to insults and would not reprimand children who threw dust at her head.

Four years allowed Rukia to see how Hisana did not encourage the gaze of men, how she was to be heard despite her apparent shyness, how she made her opinion prevail without even defending it, that she saw greed as the worst of all vices and how insults and attacks did not mean anything if she did not lower herself to the same level as those uttering them.

Rukia had realized somewhere that her sister was a very different, but very strong woman. She accompanied her on the way back in the forest that skirted the borders of Rukongai 59 to a small hut where a woman with no teeth had received them with a dubious and frankly surprised look. Hisana had shown forty kilos of kimonos with which she had arrived in Soul Society. She showed her the silk diapers and embroidered haori Rukia had worn then.

They all returned with Renji to Rukongai 23 where they had gone on with their lives.

And now Rukia walked with her head held high no matter what happened and left nothing attain her, because she knew one's own value is not imposed on all by word but by deed.

**

Thus, Hisana looked anxiously toward the battlefield. There, everything had suddenly gone quiet. Rukia and she had gone down in that part of Rukongai 23 in the morning to try and repair the small wall that surrounded the school. En route, they stopped near the little hut where they had found a family for Renji who agreed to keep him at home - the place was small, but less than their own house – if Hisana paid a little wage and fed him.

They went down and all three had worked for two short hours before having to flee for their lives when all the monsters had arrived. Rukia had observed the battle throughout the day, keeping pace with the Hollows advances. Then, panicked, she had jumped from the roof, shouting that Renji's house had been crushed by the red rays that streaked the sky. In a flash she was gone.

Hisana had been impressed by the progress Rukia had made. In thirteen years in the forest, she had stagnated at the first stage of speed. Only passing a step or two in a row. Four years alone in the Rukongai had released her and now she was moving in a flash from one end of the city to another. It made Hisana a bit nostalgic.

Kuchiki Byakuya was well known. Although more so than she had first thought. She thought of losing hope in the beginning when he was talked of and then had decided that if she were to find someone to trust, she could hardly do better than the heir to the largest estate in Soul Society. If you could not trust Kuchiki Byakuya to keep a promise, who could be trusted?

And Kuchiki Byakuya had promised he would come back.

Rukia had therefore disappeared in a very dangerous place and Hisana knew she could do nothing even if she tried. The first of Rukia's ambition when she returned home was to make Hisana a shinigami. They quickly abandoned as Hisana had even a reiatsu so weak that Rukia could not perceive it. Hisana could not do anything. She had therefore approached as closely as possible, and waited patiently, or at least with the appearance of patience. Her back was stiff from tension, her hands clasped against her stomach, feet curled up against the soles of her sandals.

All was quiet now. There had been a light, gentle, oddly soothing .... Then atrocious clamors. And then nothing.

One by one, Shinigami appeared, crossing the Rukongai. Others arrived. She had the impression that many came and went carrying stretchers. And Rukia did not return. She was just searching for Renji. She should have come back by now. The good people like Rukia did not die by going to save their friends. No, this kind of experience made them stronger, it did not kill them.

Rukia would return. And if she did not return, Hisana would do as before. She would get her back.

The line remained in place and despite all her efforts to stop a shinigami, few responded. One looked at her and muttered darkly that they were all dead in there. Hisana did not believe him. Rukia would come back. Her older sister was there to wait for her, because, as she had discovered, the greatest force in death is patience.

She waited until evening, when the last Shinigami finally left the battlefield with all the material that had been brought to take care of the injured on site. One of them had stopped for a moment, and had announced a load of drinking water would arrive soon to supply the city during the rebuilding of pumps that had exploded.

Rukia was walking next to a tall man with her arm in a sling. She seemed healthy enough, she had a big smile on her face. When she saw Hisana, she ran to her and hugged her. Hisana pressed her against her heart. Despite the years, despite the centuries ... She was her little sister. The only blood family she had. And no matter what could be said, blood was still important. Hisana had been brought up with blood.

"I'm fine, Onee-chan. Everything went well." Of course everything was fine. As long as Rukia came back alive, everything would still go well. "Everything went _very_ well."

Hisana felt her sister move away a little and saw her having a very slight nod over her shoulder. Hisana looked up and knew that after years of efforts, her patience finally paid.

Byakuya had changed. He was taller, broader, older, but his face was the same. The same fine features and quiet, gray eyes and fine hair black as night. It was impossible not to recognize him. She stepped forward and embraced him without further ceremony. Twenty nine years of separation gave her all the rights. The fabric of his kimono was thick and soft, his chest was hard underneath and she felt the pressure of his breathing against her cheek. He did not return the embrace immediately but he lowered his head and laid his cheek against her hair.

Finally, he put his arms around her and hid the rest of the world. He had returned. The person so important that populated her dreams. He was there, whole, free at last of what once held him prisoner, with all its demons. He was back and his arms held her against his heart. She had known he would come back. He would keep her in the hollow of his embrace, because that was where she was best and that was where he wanted her. She had finally found what she thought she would never find. What she thought she _could_ not find.

It was a long time before they finally parted. She stared, he stared and they realized how much they had changed and how much they were similar. "Finally, Byakuya-sama. Finally. I hope that you will never be this long again. "

It was evening already and light was sinking. Rukia told her they lingered behind because of the condition of Renji's leg. He had to avoid moving completely before they were able to perform first aid and of course, Rukia had refused to leave - and Byakuya had stayed with her. He explained what had attacked their city. An arm around the shoulders of Hisana, he followed her home, said that Renji had been taken to the Seireitei to take good care of his ankle - he said Unohana-Taisho would have him back on his feet in no time and that he could then resume his dreams of Shinigami without problems. They sat in the tiny front room - which opened on the street and the garden - which served as a sitting room, living room and bed room for the two sisters. Hisana served tea, the first wild tea Byakuya had in 27 years. His throat burned and the bitter taste remained on his tongue for some time - he mentally bade farewell to his night's sleep.

And anyway, he could not have slept. They talked all night. Twenty-nine years of life to catch up. There was so much to tell, to share ... He confessed that his life had been pretty boring until a few months earlier. He told the incredible and harrowing death of his grandfather. Rukia unceremoniously plunged her hand into his sleeve to take out the kenseikan he had hidden there. They both all examined it before they steered the conversation to another subject and he was inundated with words, stories, anecdotes... In one night, he listened more than he had in 10 years. And he spoke more than he had spoken in 10 years.

Finally, when dawn broke, it was a Byakuya slightly tipsy with joy and elation who accepted breakfast from Hisana. They had just finished when someone knocked at the door.

It was a young shinigami, fresh from the academy, which had come fetch 'Kuchiki-fukutaisho-sama' because his Captain was awake and wanted to talk to him as soon as possible. He was visibly disconcerted to talk to Hisana, who had opened the door of her house, seeing his supervisor over her shoulder. Byakuya sighed and stretched. The shinigami left once he had promised to go to Ukitake's quarters as soon as possible.

Rukia asked when it would be possible to visit Renji, he replied that he could very well take them both with him later in the morning. Hisana remarked to Rukia that in this case she was to freshen up as for the moment, she looked like what she was: a savage returning from a battlefield. Rukia added an almost convincing roar. She opened a small trunk in stained wood and pulled out a cloth, a piece of soap and her comb and then slipped into the tiny cubicle that served as kitchen, pantry and bathroom.

Hisana and Byakuya were left alone for the first time in a quarter century. Stripped completely from their uncertainties - 29 years! He returned after 29 years and had hugged her on the street, where everyone could see them, identify them ... - she knelt beside him, closer than before, and laid her head on his shoulder hands crossed on her thighs.

He answered by putting his hand on hers. Then he took her two hands in one of his and raised them to his lips, putting his arm around her waist. She approached closer to him and whispered that she had missed him so much. He did not need to respond with words, his looks said how he too had found the time they spent away from each other infinite. They remained motionless, forehead against forehead, eyes closed for a few seconds, taking the time to reacquaint themselve with what had been broken, so many years ago. Then, Rukia dropped a bucket in the second room and they were dragged from their contemplation.

Hisana stood up and went behind him, slipping a hand into his sleeve, pulling out the kenseikan. She opened the lid of the trunk and took out the comb he had given her. She stood behind him and gently combed his hair. He relished the touch of her fingers on his scalp. When the hair was free of any dust that had accumulated during the battle, she expertly slid the kenseikan between his black bangs.

In one breath he murmured. "Come live with me in Seireitei. In my house."

She stopped, put her hands on his broad shoulders to give herself countenance. "Ruk-.

- Rukia comes with us. Marry me. She will be my sister. You'll have my name."

She came to him and they embraced again. Then she stroked his face. "Is it even possible?" She was under no illusions. Marriage in the spheres he frequented was not only subject to his will. He had to convince the elders. He had to convince the Emperor, perhaps, to gain the right to marry.

"You convinced me. Convincing my Council at first will be impossible, but I have to meet the Emperor in two days. He is a very wise man and very intelligent. He knows very well my situation and he knows what I need. He will see that I need you. You are strong, intelligent, educated, perfect except for where you lived the last hundred years. You can operate without me. To him, you're the only one that can enable him to keep me both in his court and in his army. And once we have the Emperor's approval, no one would dare get in our way. "

She wondered for a moment whether he had lost his mind. It was _the Emperor_ whom he spoke about, not a nice attentive daddy. Byakuya had lost his bearings. The kindness of his monarch had made him lose touch with reality.

For years Hisana had not faced a problem of property management or maintenance of a house the size of the Kuchiki mansion. Certainly there was among the courtiers of the Imperial court a man who had a daughter with more qualifications than she. A young woman who had _centuries_ of education behind her.

Byakuya read what went through her head as he continued. "If I die, Hisana, you will continue to manage your property as you like - you will not leave anything to the Council. This is exactly what the Emperor wants. He wants the Kuchiki clan to be autonomous, like the three other large families. And women like you, there are few of them."

Gradually Hisana was persuaded. She hated confrontation and those she was setting against were likely to be particularly unpleasant, but she admitted she was frightened more because it had been literally centuries since she had engaged in noble activities. It was as if she had left a skin arriving in Soul Society, had grown, and was contemplating the prospect of returning into the old wrinkled skin.

But Byakuya did not ask of her to become a child of fifteen again, uncertain and terrified, going to a husband she had never met. He asked of her to become his own wife and be strong. He said words barely covering his need of her not to carry on the name of the Clan, but because she was who she had become.

Then, imperceptibly, she accepted. She whispered that she would prepare their things and talk to Rukia.

And Rukia, her ear glued to the door, was jubilant.

**

They had scarcely set foot in the Seireitei that a servant appeared to unload Byakuya of the wooden box in which Hisana had arranged everything she wanted to keep. Then they were taken to a building within the walls of division 4. It was a long, white block, with windows at regular intervals and a red roof - as almost all buildings they would see in Seireitei. Hisana wondered idly how he managed to navigate, and noticed from the corner of her eye that people were watching curiously.

Once they entered the building, she saw that it was organized around a long corridor with many doors to different rooms. The silence was complete and some Shinigami passing around them were obviously doing their best to keep it so. She noticed that many did not wear the traditional shinigami sword - the _zanpakuto_ - at the side and they addressed nervous glances to Byakuya. This was normal, she supposed. Byakuya was probably a figure known and respected by the elite of society. If she had not know him so well, she might have been much more nervous than them.

Hisana was truly an incredible soul. Byakuya closed his hand into a fist to keep from taking hers. She took the decision to change radically her life in a few seconds, was prepared to go in a few minutes and seemed made of this highly resistant material shinigami uniforms were made of. Indestructible. Unshakable. She was a real rock of serenity, he decided as he was watching her when she discovered the inside of Seireitei. She would be a perfect wife.

Beautiful, well mannered, thoughtful and quick. It was what every noblewoman wanted to achieve. But Hisana had resistance and energy only a long and obstinate fight could form. She had fed her sister for decades, faced fears and raging elements. Nobody else could overcome that. She would be perfectly in place at the head of his clan, he was convinced.

And not just because he wanted her to be his wife.

A warrior of a new genre, that was what she was. She applied herself to customs that wanted a woman to be weak, inferior and helpless to the letter and she turned them around so that they became her strength. She had patience and determination which would surprise her possible opponents. They would expect quick answers, passions, panic, especially from someone so young and she would respond by years and years of negotiations, until they would lose their minds and make a mistake. She would wear them out.

Rukia seemed on a little cloud at the idea of entering where only the Shinigami were allowed to enter. It was as if she had become one herself.

He had seen the progress she had made on shunpo, even though he could not begin to imagine how she had learned it in the first place. And they had told him about her stay in Inuzuri. If all this were true, then she would make a shinigami as formidable as her sister would make a clan leader.

He counted the doors until they reached the room the shinigami had told them the boy was being treated in. Many in Division 4 were surprised yesterday when he demanded that the boy be allowed to spend the night in their quarters, and have Unohana-Taisho see for his ankle to make sure it would heal properly.

He opened the door and entered, holding it for Hisana and Rukia. Rukia trotted to the bed and bowed before the Fourth captain and observed her friend. Hisana bowed beside him, after he closed the door.

Unohana, if she was surprised to see him bring additional civilians in, did not show it, and merely told them that Renji was fine and that his leg would be healed in a few days. Then she left.

The boy - a friend of Rukia - still slept soundly. His leg was completely bandaged, and he had an abrasion on his right arm. He had hair of a very strange color - red - and a contracted, suspicious face, even when he slept. It was definitely the face of someone accustomed to danger.

Byakuya said he would ensure that their prepared rooms for them at his home, and would be back in a few minutes. Rukia and Hisana nodded and sat on two chairs near the bed.

Once home, he also changed and freshened up, sent a short message to the Emperor's Intendant to inform him that he would bring someone with him on his next visit. Then he fetched them to have lunch. Before leaving the Division 4, he asked where Ukitake-Taisho was. He was informed that the captain had been well enough to leave his room in the morning shortly before his arrival, and had left a message saying he would go visit him in the evening.

Before lunch, they visited his home. They were amazed by the size of it - especially Rukia who had never set foot in a house other than the little hut in the woods and the microscopic cottage of Rukongai 23 - and the many people who lived there. There were of course Byakuya - he made sure they put them in an apartment not too far from his own place of residence as it was quieter - but there were also five of the 14 Council members, who Byakuya had interviewed and that he trusted enough to let administer everything until he would fall back on his feet, with their close relatives. There was a full armed squad, about thirty soldiers and their leaders, two occasional guests who came to bring to Byakuya information on several provinces. There was also an official of the Court of Pure Souls who lived there for a while with all his house, not to mention all the domestic and personal tutors - put together, they had seven children - Byakuya's servants and administrators.

The house was a complete little community.

The rooms he had reserved for them overlooked a vast garden. This garden was open to all, but few rooms opened directly on its gallery. A thin curtain of rice straw fell to the deck, which allowed to open windows without worrying about anyone seeing anything inside. It was easy to lift the store and get out. They took a light lunch in their small private room and then he had to leave to deal with several matters.

**

Ukitake Juushiro was a happy man.

His favorite Lieutenant - okay, he had only one lieutenant, but still - had reached Bankai. And not just any Bankai, as it seemed. From what he had been told the Bankai had been enough to take care of four Menos Grande and twelve Hollows. Without doubt, all the other captains were jealous.

In addition, the weather was fine, he felt in good shape - in a little stiffness in the hip, where he received a deep gash - and more rumors were running crazy and entertaining him on behalf of Byakuya : a young boy at Unohana's, and two young girls staying with him. The evening would be very entertaining.

He had tried one time to visit this famous boy who had been shown outstanding concerns to be allowed inside the headquarters of Division 4. Then he observed that this may be a private matter and it was therefore unnecessary to put in his two cents at risk to quadruple the number of rumors. He would see Byakuya tonight, and everything would be fine.

Unohana had let him leave in the morning, provided he'd visit in the afternoon for a consultation and to change his wound's dressing. He therefore presented himself, punctual - Unohana was very specific about appointments - and spent half an hour stretching under the watchful eye of a healer. Then he had swallowed a cure atrociously acid, which had slipped down his throat like a cold snake. He grimaced, shuddered and had gone on his way.

He had reached the gardens of the division and was heading toward the last building of the Healing quarters before leaving to go home, and then visit Byakuya. Despite the long summer day, the evening approached and the sky was gradually becoming darker. Then the most amazing spectacle in the world unfolded before him.

"Where will Renji-kun stay when he is cured?

- We will give him our house, Rukia. "

Two young girls - one more a woman than a girl - came out of the medical building talking softly. They wore modest but clean kimonos and were very similar. Hair of the same charcoal gray, almost black, although the eldest wore them so long that they formed a very large bun at the back of her head, a slight body, dry, delicate. It was now too dark to be sure, but he was sure that their eyes were almost the same color.

The most incredible was not that though. It _sometimes_ happened that civilians were allowed to visit family members too ill to be transported home. No. The girls here were clearly non-standard. Already the cuffs on their arms showing which officers had allowed them access showed the seal of Kuchiki. As if this were not enough, they were guided and escorted by a tall man, Ukitake thought he might be bigger than himself, who wore a livery that made everyone turn on their path. It was obviously a ninja and the proud purple color of his uniform accused his belonging to the above-mentioned Kuchiki family.

Ukitake swept his eyes around, remembering the words of his subordinate stating that these fighters were moving generally in teams of three or five. If they were here, he could not locate them.

Who were these girls to motivate such a safety plan?

They began to follow the man who showed them the path. They were then newly arrived, otherwise they would have gone-No.

The resemblance between the buildings in Seireitei had a reason. An intruder would be lost, but a shinigami would be able to refine his perception of reiatsus to know where to go. It was enough to know how the different reiatsus felt depending on divisions in order to get where you wanted to go. It was also the technique used by people who were to deliver a message to locate the addressee, like the butterflies did. Few Shinigamis went lost after the few first weeks. However, this posed some problems for people unused in handling their reiatsu perception.

Even if they had been there for a long time, they could nothave found their way in Seireitei, because their reiatsus were clearly those of souls who have never received any education on kido. In fact, the older one did not even seem to have any reiatsu to speak of as it was very weak. The younger one was interesting, but incisive, wild.

They did not belong to the Kuchiki family - he had heard that several people resided there for some time with their family, until things had settled down for the heir.

Now frankly curious and a little excited to meet new people, he decided to form directly the acquaintance. He approached them quickly, and did not even attempt to surprise them because he had seen their guard start and he wanted as much as possible to avoid confrontation.

He bowed politely and greeted them with enthusiasm.

"Good evening! I'm Ukitake Juushiro ; may I join you on your way to the Kuchiki House ? If this is where you are heading to, of course." He added, when he saw them blink, surprised. The oldest recovered her spirits first. She bowed deeply in turn, imitated almost immediately by the younger girl.

"I am honored, Ukitake-Taisho. My name is Sagikara Hisana Sagikara and Rukia is my younger sister. "

The youngest - Rukia - turned to her sister, surprise. "Sagikara?" She murmured. And if Ukitake had not had so fine ears, he would not have heard it. Her sister went on and ignored her. "We would love to have you along, sir. Please, do as you please. "

And they continued walking.

He began by asking if the person they had visited was feeling better. To his surprise, it was Rukia, who nevertheless looked at him with suspicion, who replied. "Oh, yes. These Shinigami from Division 4 are very effective. And Unohana-Taisho has been very kind to him. "

Ukitake refrained from raising an eyebrow. Thus, Unohana had disturbed herself to care for a civilian? Not that she selected her patients but with the number of victims of the mission that day, it was strange that she managed to put time aside for him. Rukia continued, without giving any mind to the perplexity of their new companion. "And he woke up just after lunch so they sent us a message so someone would come and see him. We brought him tea, because the medications he must take do not taste good." She pointed to the battered pot that had vaguely the shape of a teapot. A familiar smell ascended to his nostrils. It was without doubt the tea his lieutenant offered him 30 years ago.

So it was they. These special people for Byakuya. "What is this tea? I can not name that smell." Rukia smiled very proud.

"This is a special tea. Onee-chan grows it in the garden. We brought a lot with us when we came this morning and will ask Byakuyaif there is a place in the garden where they could be planted.

- Really? If they take well to Seireitei, could I allow myself to ask you a few leaves ? I remember that this tea works wonders in the morning.

-You? ..." Rukia seemed perplexed. Had he not said he did not know this tea? He smiled mischievously.

"Sometimes I shared it with my Lieutenant when I was at work as early in the morning as he."

Rukia opened her mouth in a little 'o'. "That can't be true! Ukitake-Taisho ! I had not understood you were Byakuya-nii's captain!" Her sister gave her a nudge on the back of her head with a smile that Ukitake interpreted as mocking. Rukia turned to her and hissed. "Oh, you! You could've told me before I'd ridiculed myself... "

Byakuya-nii? Ukitake had the impression that the world could stop and start rotating in the opposite direction. Obviously, they were much closer to his dear Byakuya than he had first thought. Byakuya suddenly appeared with them… He helped one of their friends, hosted them at his house, gave them an escort ... Ginrei's death had apparently led to changes not easily comprehensible.

The rest of the way to Byakuya's home went on with pleasant conversations. Rukia was a real pleasure and Hisana was very nice, although she was much more timid than her sister. He wondered idly how people like them were able to form an aquaintance with someone like Byakuya Kuchiki. And when they had met, Rukia must have been very young...

Upon entering Byakuya's home, he was greeted by a servant who ushered them in a comfortable sitting room where a small snack was waiting for the guests. Rukia would not sit still and slipped through a door to go remove a layer of kimono she wore - it was summer already and Hisana insisted she wears two layers of underwear! Now she was home she was going to withdraw and play in the garden that bordered their room.

Hisana remained with Ukitake. She could not imagine leaving him alone to wait even if it was not her role - not yet she thought, blushing. She knelt down, taking care that her kimono did not make any ungraceful folds. She and Rukia wore their best clothes - minus the ceremonial kimono that was in her wooden trunk.

She began to find the silence uncomfortable when Ukitake spoke again. "So you're friends of Byakuya ... I'm glad to finally make your acquaintance, Hisana.

"Really? She was surprised. Byakuya told you about us?

-Not in detail but I can be very persuasive when the mood takes me." She smiled. She could very well imagine Ukitake prodding Byakuya, looking for anything interesting to know.

"Anyway, we talked about you. In detail. That's why Rukia was upset, she was so eager to see how the captains of the Gotei 13 are, and would undoubtedly have preferred to recognize you by nothing but the description he gave us of you.

- I can hardly imagine Byakuya describing his captain." She smiled affectionately.

- He admires you very much."

Oh.

Well, it was difficult for him to remember an occasion where he had been as flattered with so few words. He hoped he was not reddening to much. He drove his discomfort away with a wide smile and a mischievous question.

"So, how did you three meet?

- I think it all started when I made him fall from a tree ... "

And Ukitake, who loved good stories, leaned over the attractive beginning.

It was this sight that greeted Byakuya when he came to meet his Captain. Hisana and Ukitake smiling and laughing. He wondered inwardly what they were talking about to be in such good spirits and was glad that Hisana was overcoming her shyness as well. At the same time, there was hardly a less intimidating man than Captain Ukitake.

Hisana looked up first and got up after having bowed to the captain. Then she went to him and said softly. "I think Rukia and I are going to retire early, Byakuya-sama. We had a long day and no night at all. We'll see each other tomorrow?

- Certainly. Feel free to ask Hishi-san anything to put yourself at ease, you'd oblige me." She slipped away with a smile and disappeared into the hallway. Ukitake watched his subordinate observing the young woman leave and felt a wide smile strain his cheeks.

Ah-ha! Byakuya was not completely insensitive to women then.

**

Hisana took Byakuya's word very seriously. She asked Hishi-san to have dinner for Rukia brought in and to have someone prepare them a bath. A hot bath. It had been centuries she had not had a hot bath. In the forest, they were bathing in the river that was often cold if not icy and in town, the quantity wood needed to heat a bath was too extravagant for her to indulge. So now that the opportunity presented itself, she would jump on it. In addition, she and Rukia badly needed it.

And she would _finally_ get help to wash her hair.

Half an hour later, a maid came to announce that their bath was ready. They went into the bathroom. Rukia quickly undressed, washed, and hurried to go soak in the hot water tub with an excited cry. Then she leaned over the weathered edge of wood and watched as her sister, once clean, untied patiently her long black hair. They fell to her knees, and she laughed. "It seems that my hair is all that changes gradually with time. I'd better take the opportunity to cut it a little." The maid untangle it and cut it a little above the knees to get rid of knots to tight to be combed through. Then she washed them patiently up and down several times, rinsing them and then coating them with a white paste. She rinsed again and cut it into a perfectly horizontal line at mid-thigh. Hisana braided it, pinned it back on her head and slipped into the water.

"Why do you keep your hair so long, Nee-chan? It is not practical ...

"I'm like that, Rukia. When I was alive, I had them even longer ... And okaa-sama had them almost to the ground.

"But it's _heavy._

"I do not feel Rukia. I've never known anything else. If it was suddenly cut, my head would seem so small.

She exchanged a knowing glance with Hisana. "You'll have to show them to Nii-sama, some day.

- Tomorrow, they will be very beautiful and shiny. I can always unbraid them. "

They went to bed and slept on wool and rice bran futons. It was a magical night.

**

The next day passed very quickly for Hisana, who feared her meeting with the Emperor and it passed very slowly for Byakuya who was waiting for it impatiently. He joined them for dinner but it was a short affair as the departure the next morning was scheduled before dawn.

Before going to bed, Hisana knelt before the wooden trunk they had brought with them. From it, she lifted the red tin box where they would put away their toiletries. Below the box, was the heavy costume she had worn when she arrived in Soul Society. She lifted the yellow coat embroidered with gold and ivory and hung it on a large bamboo coat rack, smoothing out the sleeves. Then, she lifted the successive kimonos and obis. Rukia watched, hardly daring to caress them with her fingertips. "I thought they were your wedding kimonos?

- No. This is the presentation kimono of a woman to her new home. I'll just change the way a few obis are worn, and will not wear those two layers and it will be perfect for a presentation to an emperor. It's the best we can do in so little time, anyway. "

Hisana observed the clothing at lenght. She tried to compare what she felt now to what she had felt all those years ago. She was always so afraid. But this was not fear of what would happen to her, it was fear of what she would do. She wanted at any price that all went well. She had the power to act on what the emperor would think of her. She had a role to play. And she trusted Byakuya.

As if she sensed that her sister was lost in dangerous thoughts Rukia let out a chuckle. "You saw Nii-sama's look when he saw you this morning with your hair down?" Hisana had seen, she smiled. Rukia continued. "He looked completely besotted."

And with these good words, they went to bed.

**

***

**

*

There! The end!

There is a sequel in writing process, but it's still embryonic and not typed, and, and, and....and I have several other stories who need my attention. There is another story set in the same universe, after Hisana died, but you'd have to be VERY kind to me to have it translated. Or someone else could translate it, that would be fine.

I hope you liked this, and if you have any question, please be assured that I'd be delighted to explain. There are, however, a few points I want to highlight :

- This is a very old story. From before I even knew Ginrei was actually called Ginrei (I wrote the story with him named 'Ito' and changed it to 'Ginrei' when I published it). That means I did not know he and Byakuya got along well and the only thing I knew about him was that he was an old man, who did not seem very kind.

- This story was triggered by a single snippet of the manga where you could see a young Byakuya training. I do not remember the chapter number, and have not read it, but he looked so much like my brother in it that I was suddenly inspired.

- As you can probably gather, I am not very familiar with Bleach's universe (I get kinda lost with all those new characters, and tidings, and treasons, and side stories and....) and any mistake in the Gotei 13's organisation or the Rukongais, or anything that comes to mind is completely my fault but I have to confess I don't really care. I had fun writing this as it is.

Thank you for your attention and hopefully your delighted reviews

Tozi

PS: I warned you in the disclaimer, Ishiguro Komesuke is mine. No touchy.

PPS: If you can't remember who Ishiguro Komesuke is, start from top.


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